There are two measurement systems used in the world today: the
imperial system (also known as the
English system) and the
metric system.
The
imperial system was developed in England hundreds of years ago and was brought to the the United States by the colonists. The metric system is the accepted measurement system used in most countries of the world. It is a system based on multiples of 10. The
metric system was developed in France around 1790 and has been revised several times. Its official name today is the
International System of Units or
SI Units for short.
Both systems have come a long way since their conception. Here are some noteworthy facts about both, which may have been "lost" in history, but are still worth mentioning today.
Base unit of massDuring the twentieth century, a variant of the metric system was used in Russia and France in which the base unit of mass was the tonne, rather than gram. Instead of kilograms, this system used millitonnes (mt).
Zero degrees FahrenheitWhen Gabriel Fahrenheit invented the first mercury thermometer, he called "zero degrees" the lowest temperature he was able to attain with a mixture of ice and salt. For the upper point of his scale, he used 96°, which he measured as normal human body temperature (we know it to be 98.6° today because of more accurate thermometers).
Metric calendarThere used to be a metric calendar, as well as metric clocks. The metric calendar, or "French Republican Calendar" divided the year into 12 months, but each month was divided into three 10-day weeks. Each day had 10 decimal hours. Each hour had 100 decimal minutes. Due to lack of popularity, the metric clocks and calendars were ended in 1795, three years after they had been first marketed.
Metric-based currencyThough the United States has largely rejected the metric system, it is used for currency, as in 100 pennies = 1 dollar. Previously, the British currency system was used, with measurements such as 12 pence to the shilling, and 20 shillings to the pound.