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Patrick Moore
by Daniel Holmes 09 Dec '12

09 Dec '12

Bummer news this morning... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20657939 Dan -- Sent from an iPad. There should be less mispelings, but more errors.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] OT, metrics -- was Re: Patrick scores again!
by Michael Wells 09 Dec '12

09 Dec '12

It's an issue with my stepsons when they refuse to do something just to be contrary. They get in trouble when they do that. People here did it not because they had good reason, but because of peer pressure from people who didn't know what they were talking about. As for there being "no benefit", try doing some things so simple as cooking, and then make adjustments and start switching from oz. to cups, up to gallons, back down to pints and over to quarts. As for 3 Mile Island, there are plenty of examples of archaic holdovers in location naming that have survived many measurement unit changes. -------- Original message -------- From: Joe Bauman <josephmbauman(a)yahoo.com> Date: To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] OT, metrics -- was Re: Patrick scores again! Michael, you seem to think there's something wrong with "the stubborn American factor" -- should we be yielding on things where we don't need to? Should we rename Three Mile Island to Four and Eight-Hundred-Twenty-Eight Thousandths Kilometer Island? I'd be pretty stubborn about that, especially since most Americans would have a lot of hassle and ABSOLUTELY NO ADVANTAGE in switching. You have to have a compelling reason to force such widespread social changes. -- Joe ________________________________ From: Michael Wells <eyeonyouproductions(a)gmail.com> To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com Sent: Saturday, December 8, 2012 5:02 PM Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] OT, metrics -- was Re: Patrick scores again! Pure and simple, metrics is a scientific system of measurement, it's not some kind of dirty trick. There is no reason to use SAE except for the stubborn American factor. -------- Original message -------- From: Joe Bauman <josephmbauman(a)yahoo.com> Date: To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> Subject: [Utah-astronomy] OT, metrics -- was Re: Patrick scores again! Yes, of course Patrick is right, I was joking about not knowing what the metric system is; I can even convert metric figures into our own system, usually. But it's time for metric-centrics to realize that they lost that battle long ago. And they lost with good reason, in that it's not native to our country and nobody should try to foist a foreign system onto us. If the rest of the world does it differently, so what? I haven't seen any big loss to our economy because of it. If it's easier to figure out volume using metric, again, so what? I'll happily use fluid ounces instead of mm. My point is, this is a little like the rotten attempts at Indian schools -- which children from reservations were forced to attend -- to make students speak English, which included punishing them for using their own languages. The argument undoubtedly was made that the children couldn't succeed in America if they didn't understand English. It was still a cruel practice and has been pretty much universally contemned. Well, there's not even that argument to be made for metric: we do very well, thank you, without using it.Thanks for letting me blow off steam -- Joe PS: That is a great picture of Pahvant Butte and a fine write-up. I've hiked inside it, and I remember the remains of some huge windmill are there. _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Send messages to the list to Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com The Utah-Astronomy mailing list is not affiliated with any astronomy club. To unsubscribe go to: http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Then enter your email address in the space provided and click on "Unsubscribe or edit options". _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Send messages to the list to Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com The Utah-Astronomy mailing list is not affiliated with any astronomy club. To unsubscribe go to: http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Then enter your email address in the space provided and click on "Unsubscribe or edit options". _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Send messages to the list to Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com The Utah-Astronomy mailing list is not affiliated with any astronomy club. To unsubscribe go to: http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Then enter your email address in the space provided and click on "Unsubscribe or edit options".

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Americanized System?
by Michael Wells 09 Dec '12

09 Dec '12

For 'special situations', such as millions of high school students graduating and then going into any scientific field and having to learn a new measurement system, we wouldn't want to inconvenience anyone. If nothing else, this is actually a system that makes sense. It would also improve a million other non-scientific things, even construction. You even get to (for the most part) throw fractions out the window. It's all decimal at that point. -------- Original message -------- From: Joe Bauman <josephmbauman(a)yahoo.com> Date: To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Americanized System? For special situations, such as nuclear medicine, it doesn't matter if you use metric units because only specialists would be using it -- it's like a technical language that computer geeks might use. But that ratified application is no excuse to force many, many millions of people to stop using the system that is familiar to them. Yet at one time that indeed was proposed; for a while speed limit signs were in both systems, supposedly the first steps of a change-over. Fortunately, sanity prevailed. Thanks, Joe ________________________________ From: Dave Gary <davegary(a)me.com> To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Saturday, December 8, 2012 11:14 PM Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Americanized System? Joe, If I was to dispense a dose of medronate (used for nuclear medicine skeletal scintigraphy) what would be the activity of the dose in “Americanized” units? The industry standard is mCi (millicuries). The adoption of weights and measures by a culture is a consequence of history. There is no system of “Americanized” units for radiation dose activity or units of radiation exposure. Similarly, our other measurement units are not ours either. They’re British. We borrow here and there and call it our own. We even confuse units within our “own” system…for example, pounds and slugs. It can be bewildering. That’s why I have the handy-dandy units-converting program on my iPod Touch. However, when I work strictly within the metric system I, rarely, need a program for conversions. That’s its appeal. Dave _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Send messages to the list to Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com The Utah-Astronomy mailing list is not affiliated with any astronomy club. To unsubscribe go to: http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Then enter your email address in the space provided and click on "Unsubscribe or edit options". _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Send messages to the list to Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com The Utah-Astronomy mailing list is not affiliated with any astronomy club. To unsubscribe go to: http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Then enter your email address in the space provided and click on "Unsubscribe or edit options".

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Americanized System?
by Dave Gary 08 Dec '12

08 Dec '12

Joe, If I was to dispense a dose of medronate (used for nuclear medicine skeletal scintigraphy) what would be the activity of the dose in “Americanized” units? The industry standard is mCi (millicuries). The adoption of weights and measures by a culture is a consequence of history. There is no system of “Americanized” units for radiation dose activity or units of radiation exposure. Similarly, our other measurement units are not ours either. They’re British. We borrow here and there and call it our own. We even confuse units within our “own” system…for example, pounds and slugs. It can be bewildering. That’s why I have the handy-dandy units-converting program on my iPod Touch. However, when I work strictly within the metric system I, rarely, need a program for conversions. That’s its appeal. Dave

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Metrics
by D P Pierce 08 Dec '12

08 Dec '12

My high school physics teacher made us work every problem the whole year in both English and metric units. By the time we were half way through the year we all hated the English sytsem. I was very disappointed when the US didn't switch over. Deloy

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Where can I get End of the World Insurance?
by jcarman6＠q.com 08 Dec '12

08 Dec '12

I'm very interested in Siegfried's insurance offer. How would I go about collecting? Sieg, w ould you require contact by Ouiji board? Or do you require some sort of physical manifestation, like ectoplasm on your doorstep? Do you require a visual manifestation,i.e, a ghost sitting in your living room? How bout an address as to where to send the proceeds. My address will be J. Carman 666 Pearly Gate Road Heaven, Kolob, 010101 Hope this is sufficient.

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comic
by erikhansen＠thebluezone.net 07 Dec '12

07 Dec '12

http://www.gocomics.com/closetohome/

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Where can I get End of the World insurance?
by D P Pierce 06 Dec '12

06 Dec '12

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/government-promises-world-won-t-end-dec… Deloy

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cosmic comic
by erikhansen＠thebluezone.net 06 Dec '12

06 Dec '12

http://www.gocomics.com/bc/?ref=comics

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Voyager 1 new discovery.
by Daniel Holmes 06 Dec '12

06 Dec '12

It discovered a previously unknown edge of the solar system boundary. Pretty cool stuff. http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/12/voyager-1-spots-new-region-at-the-ed… Dan -- Daniel Holmes, danielh(a)holmesonics.com "Laugh while you can, monkey boy!" -- Lord John Whorfin

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