We look at the metric changeover in the UK construction industry, and some of the posters that were part of it.
Continue reading “‘Think metric’. A customary way to success”
Changing standards and definitions, including several best forgotten
After the controversy of recent weeks with bashed bridges, furlongs and novel signs, we turn to something deadly dull – the definitions of length, mass (or weight) and capacity (or volume) and their relationships.
Continue reading “Changing standards and definitions, including several best forgotten”
Novel signs around the UK
Following on from our article last week about those curious signs in Southend, Ronnie Cohen, one of our regular readers, now reports on a few others that have attracted his attention.
Signs of the past in Southend-on-Sea
There has been an exchange of views on Facebook recently about alterations to signs in Southend-on-Sea carried out by “activists” over a decade ago. This has provided an opportunity for Metric Views to restate the legal position and to discuss other related issues.
Another bridge bashed
John Frewen-Lord posted this comment on Metric Views but was unable to add the pictures that he took at the scene. We can, and accordingly we have made it the subject of a short article.
Metric Malta
Malta is one of four EU countries which, within living memory, did not have metric as their primary system of measures. A recent holiday in Malta prompted a look at its transition to the metric system from traditional measures.
Waterloo 1815 – what if?
We speculate on the consequences if there had been a different outcome at the Battle of Waterloo.
Una mensura sit per totum regnum nostrum
On Monday 15 June, the 800th anniversary of the signing of Magna Carta was celebrated in much of the English-speaking world. In this article we look at one of its less well-known clauses – that relating to weights and measures.
Dying embers and a few flying sparks
The concluding article of this series looks at the ignominious end of the UK’s attempt, began fifty years ago, to make the transition to a single, simple and universal measurement system.
The white heat cools
We review the events that followed the announcement in May 1965 of a change of Government policy on the adoption of metric weights and measures.
