Recently, when surfing the internet, I came across some correspondence between a cat lover and a supplier of cat food. When the cat lover wished to order cat food the supplier’s web site required that he enter the cat’s weight in kilograms. However, he wished to enter the cat’s weight in pounds. He went on to say that he had measured his cat’s weight by first weighing himself (13 st 4 lbs, or 186 lbs) and then weighing himself while holding his cat. The rest of the article was devoted to correspondence between himself and the cat food company in which he voiced his preference for using pounds.
Continue reading “Why can I not record my cat’s weight as five pounds?”Obituary – Dick Taverne, Baron Taverne, KC
We at UKMA are deeply saddened to learn of the death of UKMA’s longest-serving patron, Dick Taverne, Baron Taverne of Pimlico. He was a man with a stellar career both in politics and outside, and was an avid supporter of UKMA and its cause.
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Metric mystery
Nicholas Kerr cries out against the metric mystery which has us using two systems at once.
Metric speed limits, with a limit of 30 km/h in built-up areas, could reduce annual insurance premiums by £50
Yet another argument in favour of switching to metric road speed limits has emerged since Wales switched the default speed limit in built-up areas from 30 mph to 20 mph two years ago.
Do British road signs display symbols or abbreviations?
According to the Concise Oxford Dictionary, an abbreviation is defined as a “shortened form of a word in which part of the word is written” [rather than the whole word] while a symbol is defined as a “Mark or character taken as the conventional sign of some object or idea or process”. As a result, abbreviations are language-sensitive whereas symbols can be consistent across linguistic boundaries.
Continue reading “Do British road signs display symbols or abbreviations?”“How many what?!”
There is a new board game, about measurement, called “How Many What?!”. Or rather it is about describing the size of things without the benefit of a universal measurement system.
The game’s blurb says, “Some people will use anything but the metric system to measure things! How Many What?! is the ridiculous party game of absurd comparisons.”
Prince Albert and the measurement muddle in the 1860s
165 years ago, in his opening address at the London meeting of the International Statistical Congress, held on 16 July 1860, Prince Albert drew attention to the measurement muddle prevalent at the time, and was in no doubt that the muddle would have to go.
Words from his speech were included in the 1862 Report From The Select Committee On Weights And Measures, dated 15 July 1862.
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The old Swedish decimal measurement system
The English bishop John Wilkins was not the only one who developed a decimal-based measurement system that predates the metric system. Anders Bure, a Swedish mathematician and cartographer who lived from 1571 to 1646, developed a different decimal system that used the Swedish foot as the base unit. He tried to introduce this system of weights and measures in Sweden in the seventeenth century. Georg Stiernhielm, a Swedish civil servant, linguist and poet who lived from 1598 to 1672, later recommended this system should become the standard. This system was used between 1855 and 1889. Then Sweden changed over to the metric system on 1 January 1889.
Continue reading “The old Swedish decimal measurement system”Report on Measure for Measure Conference
Martin Vlietstra attended the St Cross Centre for the History and Philosophy of Physics (HAPP) one-day conference in Oxford on Saturday 7 June 2025 and has written a report about the conference for Metric Views.
Continue reading “Report on Measure for Measure Conference”DfT excuse for promoting unauthorised imperial signs in the TSM for the last 9 years
When the latest Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions (TSRGD) came into force in April 2016, imperial-only restriction signs for height, width and length were no longer authorised. However, the Traffic Signs Manual (TSM) that provides guidance to road contractors on signage has not been updated since 2009 and still includes imperial-only restriction signs to this day. Six months ago, I asked my local MP to contact the Secretary of State for Transport to ask why the Department for Transport has been promoting the use of unauthorised imperial-only road signs since 2016. I received a reply from the DfT a few days ago.
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Metric Views 