That's usually the case. The UK and other English-speaking contries adapted to the new international standards, while the US refused to do so (case in point, the metric system).
How do you write dates?
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The metric system is used sporadically in the US--I've frequently encountered very small things usually measured in milimeters and most vehicle odometers and some highway signs giving readings in both miles and kilometers.
It took decades for the UK to switch to metric from imperial. You dual label things in both metric and imperial. Teach both at school for a period and then say after 10-15 years only teach metric. It's a slow process and no one pretends it'll be easy but surely from an econmic point of view it would make sense to change. If everyone else is using it you are complicating things by not using it and having to convert.
Plus you don't lose things like a multi-million dollar probe to someone using metric whilst someone else uses imperial. Seriously as I understand it even in the US scientist and Engineers uses metric as a rule.
Plus you don't lose things like a multi-million dollar probe to someone using metric whilst someone else uses imperial. Seriously as I understand it even in the US scientist and Engineers uses metric as a rule.
Of course you can use the number generically without a set month - i.e the group always meets on the 10th of the month. Rather than every month the group meets on the 10th.
I would agree. But the economics of it are not simple to compute, and that compound to the problems. The switch from the national currencies to the Euro in 2002 was not easy, and that was just one unit. I can only imagine how it would be to switch from Imperial to Metric. But the UK did it for the most part, and I would say they are doing pretty well. I'm sure everybody who tries can do it.
I'm a horse. Sexual innuendos are more than welcome.
It is used in the US, but not commonly. Doctors, nurses, engineers, and scientists are just a few of the professions I can think of that use metric measurements.
Considering that medicinal doses are measured in milligrams, large objects are weighed in metric tons, and soda bottles are sold in two-liter containers, I'd say people here in the U.S. do use the Metric System, though it's not as prevalent as the English System (the one you refer to as Imperial).
ETA: I did learn both measurement systems when I was growing up in another country, but here in the U.S., the English System is more widely used.
ETA: I did learn both measurement systems when I was growing up in another country, but here in the U.S., the English System is more widely used.
Nonsense. It's convention in the USA to order dates that way and therefore is more easily understandable to Americans, but it doesn't make more sense.
With that argument the order should be year-month-day.
eta: just saw that I was slow with this comment, sorry.
No because the year last for a longer period, while you still need to know the immediate context for what day it is..
No, you really don't. It's merely custom.
Well, I'm American, so I habitually use MM/DD/YY and sometimes YYYY for everyday usage such as checks, memberships, etc., i.e. 1/26/12
My work can involve international clients so to avoid confusion I often use DD MMM YY where MMM is a written abbreviation, i.e. 26 Jan 12
When checking for manufacturing dates of products I deal with, I must check the country of origin to determine whether 3/1/99 means March 1st or 3rd of January, for instance.
As for time, I do find 24 hour clocks referred to as military time, but not necessarily being used in a military context. My time pieces are all presently set to 12 hour time.
My work can involve international clients so to avoid confusion I often use DD MMM YY where MMM is a written abbreviation, i.e. 26 Jan 12
When checking for manufacturing dates of products I deal with, I must check the country of origin to determine whether 3/1/99 means March 1st or 3rd of January, for instance.
As for time, I do find 24 hour clocks referred to as military time, but not necessarily being used in a military context. My time pieces are all presently set to 12 hour time.
This thread should be more aptly titled "Dates and Measures."
^If we are talking measurements, people forgot to specify the scale they are using to measure. i.e If I asked how hot it was were you are today I suspect most would reply something like 40. To most of the world 40 is fairly hot as they would translate it first as degrees celsius (108F). Whilst most Americans would consider it fairly cool as 40F (~4.5C)
i was taught both imperial and metric and as a consequence use a completely random mess of both. i'm 6 foot 1 tall and can run 100m in about 11 seconds, i think cars doing more than 35mph are going to fast, that 25 degrees C is rather hot and that anything below 5C is cold. i got my swimming badge for 10m and i weigh about 12 or 13 stone.
My favorite post of the day at either of the two forums I hang out at.A year is really not a long time.
The most important context is the year.
How old are you?
How old is your car?
How long have you been married?
When did grandma die?
When did you move into your house?
How long did World War 2 last?
When did this economic cluster suckitude we are in now start?
etc.
For almost all important dates and time measurements, the year is the most important time measure.
