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June 24, 2015 8:53 pm  #1


and i would walk 500...

like it or not, many canadian (40+) still use imperial measurement in their everyday life. you can see it all around us. i don't want to get into the "why's", i'm just stating a fact. that said, you'd think broadcasters would offer metric and imperial measurements during their weather "alerts" (it's been known to happen but not on a regular basis). the way i see it, in these situations. listener's/viewer's imdediate comprehension is critical, regardless of government mandates. okay, so 10cm's sounds a lot worse than "just under 4 inches", and more alerts mean more $'s, but come on... who are you trying to kid?... i know, i know, the answewr is obvious.
 

 

 

June 24, 2015 10:35 pm  #2


Re: and i would walk 500...

Hank...Ya old pool of 'yerr-een'!!!  It's your ol' buddy 'Guess Who This Is'...Me...In-cog-neet-oh.  Shhh!!!  Don't say a word.  [Pelmorex.  Oldies  Shhhh!]

Yep...If your audience is pre 'modern'...Imperial is more than just a margarine.  It's a service.  Period.  [unless you subscribe to elder abuse...and obviously *I* don't.]

No really dear!!!  That's a very 'admiral' 10 cms you're admiring.  I'm almost a full-fledged porno star.

Last edited by Old Codger (June 24, 2015 10:41 pm)

 

June 25, 2015 10:13 am  #3


Re: and i would walk 500...

the only time i hear the word "hectare" is when there's a report on a forest fire. meanwhile, if a property sits on 8 acres then that translates to (100/8 hectares = aww forget it). i'll stick with the oliver douglas approach; green acres is the place for me!

hey "old codger". i read you tag. nothing to hide here. i've stated my name on this board and when i was a guest (twice) on craig and don's sowny radio show. i'm just paying homage to my favorite stern wackpacker who passed away years ago.

Last edited by the original hank (June 25, 2015 10:29 am)

     Thread Starter
 

June 25, 2015 1:59 pm  #4


Re: and i would walk 500...

Jazz FM 91.1 CJRT is the only GTA station that I am aware of which consistently provides temps in C and F.   I always smile when I hear them say...the temp in F ."for our listeners in Buffalo."   Yeh right!.  

I have reprogrammed my cars to display temp in F.   Just to be contrary.  

 

June 25, 2015 11:24 pm  #5


Re: and i would walk 500...

According to good old wiki:

Fahrenheit remains the official scale for the following countries: theBahamasBelize, the Cayman IslandsPalau and the United Statesand associated territories (Puerto RicoGuam and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Canada retains it as a supplementary scale that can be used alongside Celsius.

 

Last edited by Peter the K (June 25, 2015 11:24 pm)

 

June 26, 2015 8:02 am  #6


Re: and i would walk 500...

Fahrenheit continues to be used in Dundalk, although Celsius is rumoured to be catching on in Holstein & Varney
 

 

June 26, 2015 12:16 pm  #7


Re: and i would walk 500...

I used to have a clip on the computer at 'RB I'd fire off whenever I could..  It was a woman, older than dust who phoned in to say "Why doesn't your station give the temperature in Fahrenheit anymore..  we old people need the temperature in Fahrenheit"  and that was 15 years ago

Says it all really

 


Madness takes its toll.  Please have exact change.
 
 

June 26, 2015 12:20 pm  #8


Re: and i would walk 500...

I would contend we seem to flip between C in winter and F in summer.

38C doesn't sound as hot as 100F
-18C sounds way colder tha 0F.

 


Madness takes its toll.  Please have exact change.
 
 

June 26, 2015 12:26 pm  #9


Re: and i would walk 500...

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

 

June 26, 2015 11:38 pm  #10


Re: and i would walk 500...

again, the point i want to make isn't dealing with temperature... (people in canada have accepted celsius, for the most part,,... except when it comes to baking). i'm referring to measurement when it comes to storms (height and even mph). whether it be right or wrong imperial measurement (especially height and length) is still being used in our everyday life (even at a lot of doc offices... weight and height). doesn't it make sense to "include" a measurement that a lot of people can comprehend quickly when broadcasting a weather alert?

my point isn't about national pride (hey, we do something that americans don't) or teaching old dogs new tricks (save that for another thread). it's about informing residents during storms, without many having to do the math!  like it or not, many canadian business sectors have realized the popularity of imperial measurement and acted accordingly. why can't broadcasters do the same during weather alerts? i doubt very much that such a would cause an uproar (it might even help a station gain more viewers/listeners). remember, just because broadcasters only use metric doesn't mean their listeners/viewers do... and isn't it supposed to be about filling the listeners/viewers needs?

hell, when i watch many recent british based tv shows they still talk in miles and mph. in my opinion, if gas were sold by the gallon many canadians would have a fit when seeing the price.

be honest now, when it comes to determining if a vehicle is delivering good "mileage" (or is that kilometerage?)... ok, make that fuel consumption,  do you comprehend kilometers per 100 liters quicker than miles per gallon?  nuff said. 

Last edited by the original hank (June 26, 2015 11:46 pm)

     Thread Starter
 

June 27, 2015 5:10 am  #11


Re: and i would walk 500...

When preparing a grilled cheese sandwich I never use a thermometer.     The sandwich is removed from the grill when the butter starts to smoke.    One is best enjoyed with chilled Pinot Grigio & Leamington ketchup while listening to Stacey Thompson on Boom 97.3 FM and clipping one's toenails

Last edited by Kilgore (June 27, 2015 7:15 am)

 

December 5, 2021 2:19 am  #12


Re: and i would walk 500...

I'm comfortable with Celsius temps an kilometres and kilowatts. With grams and kilograms I usually have to do the mental conversion. And Kilopascals leaves me flummoxed. 

I think we'd all be outraged if gas was priced per gallon.

Last edited by turkeytop (December 5, 2021 2:23 am)


I started out with nothing and I still have most of it.
 

December 5, 2021 2:59 am  #13


Re: and i would walk 500...

turkeytop wrote:

I think we'd all be outraged if gas was priced per gallon.

The talk radio stations close enough to the border must be having a lot of fun trying to explain to listeners how much the price of gas is on each side of the border. lol 

Which is cheaper? American gas or Canadian?

CKTB maybe, as they compare a trip to Buffalo, and whether or not to get gas there or fill up first here beforehand...same for WBEN & a trip to the Canadian side of Niagara... 

Yes, the pandemic has to clear first, but you get what I'm saying...


RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person. 
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.

 
 

December 5, 2021 5:09 am  #14


Re: and i would walk 500...

If you want to know how much you are paying for gas per gallon, divide the price by .22. Up until a week ago we were paying about $1.43/litre. or $6.50/ gal. 2.5cm=1inch. So an easy mental calculation means 5-10 cm of snow is 2"-4" No problem. The grocery store where I am employed, displays his prices in the meat and seafood counters per lb.

 

December 5, 2021 8:01 am  #15


Re: and i would walk 500...

the original hank wrote:

like it or not, many canadian (40+) still use imperial measurement in their everyday life. you can see it all around us. i don't want to get into the "why's", i'm just stating a fact. that said, you'd think broadcasters would offer metric and imperial measurements during their weather "alerts" (it's been known to happen but not on a regular basis). the way i see it, in these situations. listener's/viewer's imdediate comprehension is critical, regardless of government mandates. okay, so 10cm's sounds a lot worse than "just under 4 inches", and more alerts mean more $'s, but come on... who are you trying to kid?... i know, i know, the answewr is obvious.
 

 

Depends on the measurement. Most Canadians use pounds when talking about their weight and feet and inches when talking about their height and, many use imperial measurements when cooking but few people under 55 or so would have any idea whether 80 degrees Farenheit is a hot day or a cold day.

Last edited by Hansa (December 5, 2021 8:02 am)

 

December 5, 2021 8:48 am  #16


Re: and i would walk 500...

I know, I had difficulty when they changed the measurement of length from league, cubit, hand and barleycorn to inches feet, yards, perch, furlong and mile.

Then they changed weight/volume from peck and bushel to ounces, pounds, stones, hundredweight and tons.

I think the measurement of temperature should dispense with any number system and just use very cold, cold, warm, hot and very hot.

 

December 5, 2021 10:04 am  #17


Re: and i would walk 500...

I've mostly mastered the newer (if something that's been here since 1975 can be called "newer") measurement, but I admit in my head I still have to convert centimetres to inches to determine how much snow we're expecting, and I'm still totally lost when I when hear 'keep back 2 metres.' No idea how far that is, but I've always been mathematically challenged - which is how I wound up in radio!

I'm not sure how many here remember the backlash that greeted the introduction of the metric system. The two biggest impacts were at the gas pump and on the radio, for weather and temperatures reports. Some stations embraced the change when it was implemented on April 1, 1975 (appropriately April Fool's Day) while others didn't. Most simply reported in both for a while, until the audience got used to it. (Does AM740 still do both? If any audience was the least likely to embrace the change, it might be an older demo.)

There was one curmudgeon, however, who absolutely refused to go from F to C when the switch was made and he may have been the only one in radio big enough to get away with it. 

 

December 5, 2021 10:21 am  #18


Re: and i would walk 500...

I think Mr Sinclair was taking things to another degree
 


Cheers,
Jody Thornton
 
 

December 5, 2021 10:25 am  #19


Re: and i would walk 500...

I tend to use metric with temperature (outside), litres and speed/distance, only because it's in our faces.
But for size measurements, I stick to Imperial.  For height, weight and measurements,inches and feet make more relatable sense to me.

One exception for temperature is "body temperature".  I stick with fareinheit there, but use celsius for outside temperature.

I just can't imagine holding a 30 centimetre single
 


Cheers,
Jody Thornton
 
 

December 5, 2021 10:43 am  #20


Re: and i would walk 500...

One of my favourite classics is  Jules Verne's "111,120 Kilometres Under the Sea" : )) .. 

 

December 5, 2021 11:10 am  #21


Re: and i would walk 500...

I knew this had to be on the web somewhere, and sure enough, I found it on Dale Patterson's always great Rock Radio Scrapbook site. It's the epic CFTR April Fool's Day package about the coming of "Metric Time," which was supposedly going to be introduced as the next big change in Canada, based on a 10-hour clock. 

The six-minute piece not only has large helpings of the newscast with Robert Holiday, it's followed by the tail end of a phone recording the station had set up trying to explain the entire nightmare to confused and angry listeners. Only those who stayed for the whole thing learned at the end that they'd been had.  

CFTR Metric Time Prank

 

December 5, 2021 11:55 am  #22


Re: and i would walk 500...

Peter the K wrote:

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

Well, it gives you more choices to decide what the heat/coolness will be.  20, 21C = 68, 69, 70F.  Two choices versus three.
 


- Not an industry person.  Just a guy with a love of Toronto radio. 
 

December 5, 2021 12:01 pm  #23


Re: and i would walk 500...

Peter the K wrote:

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

Wow. I do the exact same thing and I've never really given it that much thought before this post. But somehow, I've always felt that 77F just feels warmer in the winter than 25C!

 

December 5, 2021 5:57 pm  #24


Re: and i would walk 500...

RadioActive wrote:

Peter the K wrote:

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

Wow. I do the exact same thing and I've never really given it that much thought before this post. But somehow, I've always felt that 77F just feels warmer in the winter than 25C!

Oh, my. Well, I'm taking you off my potential roommate list. 19C here.

 

December 5, 2021 6:14 pm  #25


Re: and i would walk 500...

Leslieville Bill wrote:

Peter the K wrote:

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

Well, it gives you more choices to decide what the heat/coolness will be.  20, 21C = 68, 69, 70F.  Two choices versus three.
 

Wow.  Talk about reviving an old thread.  I saw this and didn't even remember replying.  Then I realized it was from 2015. 

In 2019, we moved to a house whose thermostat was set up in Celsius.  Being old enough to be conversant in that scale as well as Fahrenheit, I just left it alone.  Then I found I missed the granularity of Fahrenheit.  I switched it over and it just seemed easier to tweak as the temps in Celsius seemed too spaced apart.  Probably totally in my head, but it just felt better.

And whenever I go to the hospital for my clinic appointments, they weigh me.  The weight is taken in Kilos and then they always switch to pounds so "the old fat guy on the scale" can understand the weight.  It always surprises them when I give them the number in pounds (kilos x 2.2) before they push the button to switch over.  At least I know the old noodle still works -- for the most part. 
 

Last edited by Peter the K (December 5, 2021 6:16 pm)

 

December 5, 2021 6:26 pm  #26


Re: and i would walk 500...

Peter the K wrote:

And whenever I go to the hospital for my clinic appointments, they weigh me.  The weight is taken in Kilos and then they always switch to pounds so "the old fat guy on the scale" can understand the weight.  It always surprises them when I give them the number in pounds (kilos x 2.2) before they push the button to switch over.  At least I know the old noodle still works -- for the most part. 
 

I was born post-metric and I couldn't tell you my weight or height in metric.

 

December 5, 2021 6:36 pm  #27


Re: and i would walk 500...

RadioAaron wrote:

RadioActive wrote:

Peter the K wrote:

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

Wow. I do the exact same thing and I've never really given it that much thought before this post. But somehow, I've always felt that 77F just feels warmer in the winter than 25C!

Oh, my. Well, I'm taking you off my potential roommate list. 19C here.

I love heat and I hate winter. We would never make a good fit!

I should have been born in Hawaii, which - incredible as it may seem - had a blizzard warning this week!

 

December 5, 2021 10:50 pm  #28


Re: and i would walk 500...

RadioActive wrote:

I should have been born in Hawaii, which - incredible as it may seem - had a blizzard warning this week

...and a foot of snow, er, 30.48 cms.

 

December 6, 2021 3:09 am  #29


Re: and i would walk 500...

Peter the K wrote:

Leslieville Bill wrote:

Peter the K wrote:

Funny, I use celcius everywhere except my home thermostat which I've set to display in F.

I don't know why.
 

Well, it gives you more choices to decide what the heat/coolness will be.  20, 21C = 68, 69, 70F.  Two choices versus three.
 

Wow.  Talk about reviving an old thread.  I saw this and didn't even remember replying.  Then I realized it was from 2015. 

In 2019, we moved to a house whose thermostat was set up in Celsius.  Being old enough to be conversant in that scale as well as Fahrenheit, I just left it alone.  Then I found I missed the granularity of Fahrenheit.  I switched it over and it just seemed easier to tweak as the temps in Celsius seemed too spaced apart.  Probably totally in my head, but it just felt better.

And whenever I go to the hospital for my clinic appointments, they weigh me.  The weight is taken in Kilos and then they always switch to pounds so "the old fat guy on the scale" can understand the weight.  It always surprises them when I give them the number in pounds (kilos x 2.2) before they push the button to switch over.  At least I know the old noodle still works -- for the most part. 
 

me too. i didn't remember replyi.... wait a minute... i started this thread... never mind. i gotta go. i've got a (metric) ton of pennies to count.... whatever a metric ton is. 

     Thread Starter
 

December 6, 2021 5:14 am  #30


Re: and i would walk 500...

We finished converting to metric in this country in 1985.  If you haven't bothered to familiarize yourself with it after 36 years isn't that your fault?