Happy New Year to all our readers.
In this article, the Editor explains the reason for the absence of new posts on MV in recent weeks. This leads to a discussion of a issue that few of us, perhaps, have encountered.
Category: Consumer affairs
A case of dumbing down on measures for US audience
Amid the reports last year about the failure of consumer tests for the Galaxy S7 Active phone, one notable difference between the official use of the International Protection (a.k.a Ingress Protection) marks and the consumer reviews on an American website is the use of different measurement systems. Ronnie Cohen explains.
Continue reading “A case of dumbing down on measures for US audience”
New Internationalist, a metric role model for the British media
Back after our summer break, Metric Views is happy to publicize a periodical that might have escaped our readers’ attention in recent years. Ronnie Cohen explains.
Continue reading “New Internationalist, a metric role model for the British media”
Do we sacrifice consistency and clarity for the sake of convention?
We are familiar with size numbers for shoes, hats, dresses and so on. Ronnie Cohen looks at the convention for screen sizes based on inches and asks if this really makes sense.
Continue reading “Do we sacrifice consistency and clarity for the sake of convention?”
Does metric-only labelling require changes to package sizes?
An argument made against metric-only labelling in the US is that manufacturers would need to change packaging to rational metric sizes. Ronnie Cohen looks at the UK’s experience over the past 50 years.
Continue reading “Does metric-only labelling require changes to package sizes?”
Straight bananas and the metric system – the EU legacy?
With Brexit still dominating the news, Ronnie Cohen looks at one of the biggest obstacles to completing our transition to the metric system: its perceived link to the European Union.
Continue reading “Straight bananas and the metric system – the EU legacy?”
Pint-sized beer and cider in British shops
Ronnie Cohen takes a look at the beer and cider on sale in his local shops and supermarket.
Continue reading “Pint-sized beer and cider in British shops”
The American Influence on Canada’s Metrication
John Frewen-Lord, a frequent contributor to Metric Views, has just returned from one of his regular trips to Canada. He gives us his thoughts.
Continue reading “The American Influence on Canada’s Metrication”
A Dickensian surprise
Charles Dickens is enduringly popular for his memorable characters and his portrayal of the social evils of Victorian England. One of our regular readers, Martin Vlietstra, draws attention to an unexpected contribution he made to Britain’s long-running metrication debate.
Odd and inconsistent product descriptions
We highlight an oddity in Waitrose product description and pricing, recently picked up in an article on msn. And no, this is not a belated April fool story.
Continue reading “Odd and inconsistent product descriptions”
