Fifty years ago, the Government made a low-key announcement of a change in policy in relation to the use of metric units by industry. We consider how a speech by the Leader of the Opposition two years earlier had signalled the possibility of progress in this area.
Author: Derek Pollard
Towards a metric Britain (in fits and starts)
We highlight some events during the UK’s prolonged transition to a single, simple, rational and universal measurement system, and look forward to an important anniversary later this month.
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Celsiheit is back – but help is at hand
Just when we thought we had seen the last of Fahrenheit temperatures, a tabloid headline warns us against complacency and reminds us of those awkward conversions. Awkward no more, we are pleased to say, as Metric Views has learnt of a simple formula.
A problem with symbols
A quest by one of our readers for a new washing machine has prompted a look at Britain’s confused approach to the use of symbols.
Break of railway gauge proposed
The UK Department for Transport is proposing that a break in railway gauge should be introduced at the UK-French border. Britain’s main line railways will adopt the Irish track gauge of 1600 mm (5’– 3”).
A skirmish across the Pond
Readers may be interested in a recent exchange of views between Clay Rogers, a journalist with a newspaper in Iowa, and Paul Trusten, Vice President of UKMA’s sister organisation in the USA.
Signs of the times
We compare the Government’s different approaches to two separate proposals for new road signs.
Whitworth’s forgotten legacy
Whitworth is famous for the eponymous screw thread, and for his promotion of standard measures and interchangeability that brought about an engineering revolution. Less well known are his enthusiasm for decimal measurement and his opposition to the introduction of the metric system in Britain.
Imperial in 2015
It is almost 50 years since the announcement in Parliament that the UK would be ‘going metric’, and 15 years since significant progress last occurred. Although most Imperial units have passed into history, a few have survived in common use. Here, we offer a Guide to those surviving units for readers familiar only with metric. And for Americans, who may feel at home with Imperial measures, we provide some warnings.
Inside the Commons
Have you been watching this series on BBC2 on Tuesdays at 9.00 pm? Three programmes have already been broadcast, with the final on due on 24 February. They show the workings of the House of Commons and there are a few surprises, or perhaps not.
Metric Views 