The United States, Myanmar, and Liberia have something in common. Of all the countries in the world, these are the only three that use the imperial system, and we should change that.
The imperial system uses units such as miles for length, pounds for mass, and gallons for carrying capacity. Most of the rest of the world uses units such as kilometers, grams, and liters.
The effects of using two different measuring systems can be catastrophic. In 1999, NASA lost a spacecraft orbiting Mars, which cost over $125 million dollars, because the different groups of mathematicians calculating its orbit were using different measuring systems. In 1983, a Canadian aircraft carrying dozens of passengers lost fuel mid-flight because of an error in converting metric and imperial units.
The metric system also makes it more convenient to remember certain benchmarks. Water would freeze at zero degrees Celsius and boil at 100 degrees Celsius instead of at 32 and 212 degrees Fahrenheit, for instance. The United States should match the rest of the world and make lives easier for its citizens.
WJPS teacher, Mr. Mengani agreed with this view. He said, “Absolutely, without question. The rest of the world already uses it and it makes more sense.”
WJPS teacher, Ms. Flanigan added on. She stated, “Yes, because it would keep us on par with everyone else.”
“Ruler – Wooden; Why no ‘Inches’ label?” by B/Hiking Nikon Oregon is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
