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Okay, granted, it's silly to include nanoscale measurements along with lightyears. But my point still remains, even if you're sticking with a small (or large) scale - if you want to total up a bunch of measurements together, you first have to convert everything to a common denominator first.
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Metric has the same problem as slide rules (the only kind of calculators allowed in school in my day): you have to work out the units external to the multiplications. Last week, I went into a shop and asked for a slider bolt as 15mm instead of 15cm; there is no way that I would have accidentally asked for 1/2" (slightly less that 15mm) instead of 6". My old wood merchant sold lengths of wood 4m long as metric 13 foot.
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jsc42 wrote: slide rules
Slip Stick
Everyone in my high school (grades 9 - 12) learned to use one. Then, afterwards in university, we used it because the "new fangled" calculators cost far to much for any student. Chemistry had a small bunch of Wang calculators - did basic arithmetic attached to a box the size of a full-size desktop PC.
One thing we did learn, especially and very rigorously in "Chemistry 101": significant digits. A slide rule was limited to three; calculators, which eventually became generally affordable by Grad School, gave about eight figures - most of which were of artificial accuracy - but the undergrads I tought never failed to report all of them (points off after first few weeks of warnings and instructions: I think this species is now known to us as "users").
My kids: I wouldn't let them have or use a calculator until well into high school so that they could actually develop "number sense". I relented when they were taking exams where the speed made a difference and I wanted them to "win".
It's like cell phones: calculators have their place. They are, however, abused to the point where they cause damage. Calculators increased innumeracy. "smart phones" decreased social skills and increased general ignorance as google was always at their finger tips.
Like the calculator and significant digit absurdities, they don't have the basic understanding of reality to judge what they google as valid or bullshit. I'm starting to wonder if they even care.
So - winding back to the original topic: I'm sure there must be a place for the metric system. But, as I said in the past, avoirdupois weights come in powers of two (ounce, gill, cup, pint, quart,. . .) - like computer storage. Way ahead of its time.
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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Yes I agree. Hence why I said the problem with imperial isn't that it cannot be precise.
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Imperial was precise, until in 1930 (UK) / 1932 (USA) they made the inch 'exactly' 25.4mm. Since then, the meter has been redefined several times meaning that as the inch was correlated to it, it has become imprecise.
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Amarnath S wrote: Engineering needs precision, which needs to be in millimetres
No, it can be in any system you like. Precision is based on the tools to do the measuring, not the units that are in use. And in the West we managed for hundreds of years with the imperial system.
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Strangely enough, it depend what you are measuring with.
A vernier or a micrometer will be as accurate as it is rated (generally 0.001" or 0.2mm which makes the imperial one "less accurate")
But the standard "inch and mm" ruler is generally more accurate in Imperial because while the metric shows only 1mm divisions, the Imperial side will show 1/32". There are rulers which show 1/2mm divisions, but they generally also include 1/64" so Imperial wins again ...
Vogel Steel Rule[^]
Having said that, I work in metric at a fine scale (and imperial for driving) simply because the maths is a load easier to work out! 
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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OriginalGriff wrote: Strangely enough, it depend what you are measuring with.
If you're into fractals at all, the length of something is very dependent upon the size of what one measures it with.
What's the length of the coastline of the UK measured with a 100 mi long rule? How about a 1 mile rule? Try with a yard stick.
This is the original "less is more" (or is that "more is less"?)
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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W∴ Balboos, GHB wrote: What's the length of the coastline of the UK measured with a 100 mi long rule?
High tide, or low tide? It makes a big difference.
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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OriginalGriff wrote: High tide, or low tide? It makes a big difference.
With the 100mi long ruler, maybe not - but as the ruler gets smaller it can follow the contours better and the length increases. A 10mi across harbor would be missed entirely with the giant size ruler.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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Come now: Milli yards and kilo yards sound so silly! 
Get me coffee and no one gets hurt!
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How about "ångströmed forward"? 
"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined."
- Homer
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(Not an official SI unit these days, poor thing. The metric system will soon follow in its deprecated footsteps) - yet when you speak of Angstroms I begin to see the light.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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And the inch-worm would be the 2.54cm worm.
It was only in wine that he laid down no limit for himself, but he did not allow himself to be confused by it.
― Confucian Analects: Rules of Confucius about his food
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Someone [^] was claiming that the Earth had a second moon that NASA does not want us to know about and it turns out part of that is true.
Earth has two extra, hidden 'moons'[^]
Interesting.
I think this might explain why so many people are crazy these days; their phases are off being pulled by more than one moon. 
Social Media - A platform that makes it easier for the crazies to find each other.
Everyone is born right handed. Only the strongest overcome it.
Fight for left-handed rights and hand equality.
modified 20-Jul-20 9:48am.
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Very interesting.
And..."When will Elon Musk be sending one of his Teslas to orbit one of those clouds?" 
Also, if I make sure to always stay under this cloud on sunny days, can I stop slathering on the sunscreen? What kind of SPF does the dust-cloud provide?
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You count dust clouds as moons ?
If so, I have some handsome real-estate for you to purchase at a bargain rate - good hunting, too: lots of dust-bunnies!
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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W∴ Balboos, GHB wrote: I have some handsome real-estate for you to purchase at a bargain rate
Zillow link?
Social Media - A platform that makes it easier for the crazies to find each other.
Everyone is born right handed. Only the strongest overcome it.
Fight for left-handed rights and hand equality.
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More like blowing in the wind
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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W∴ Balboos, GHB wrote: blowing in the wind
Like your offer. 
Social Media - A platform that makes it easier for the crazies to find each other.
Everyone is born right handed. Only the strongest overcome it.
Fight for left-handed rights and hand equality.
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L4 and L5 are the only stable Lagrange points, in the sense that a particle in one of them given a small perturbation will orbit around the point. L1,2,3 are unstable, in the sense that a particle in one given a small perturbation will keep going. It is therefore unlikely that large amounts of dust have collected in them.
It would be interesting to see if the Earth-Solar Lagrange points (L4,5) have also collected stuff. We already know that Jupiter has collections of asteroids in its Solar L4,5 points.
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
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Perhaps the OP was mooned a few times too often?
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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The Wikipedia article 3753 Cruithne says that Cruithne is not a moon of Earth, that the Beeb was wrong  , and that this was corrected in a later episode of Qi.
The article also mentions that Earth has one known object in the Earth-Sun L4 position (none known in L5), so that answers my other question.
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
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... we are talking about a very predatory animal here: few days go by without something dead or alive being dropped in the living room. Dij brings in prey from a shrew the size of your thumbnail up to adult rats and blackbirds.
And yes, I know he stalks the neighbours bird table - it has a sign on it saying "McDijalds"!
But today, while I was hanging out the washing I saw a hunt from beginning to end.
He walks out of the house, onto the back lawn and sits down. And just sits there, looking around at the flowers, the sky. Just an apex predator enjoying the sunshine. Then he drops his head to the ground, picks up a mouse, takes it indoors and lets it go for me to hunt down ... 
How the heck does that work? 
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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