...yet more on SI units...

[Vincent.King@DOEGJPO.COM (Vincent King)]

     Radsafers,
     
     A few random observations on switching to SI radiological units-
     
     ...many of us in the U.S. already have to be conversant in both sets 
     of units to perform our jobs; standardizing would make our lives 
     easier and involve no added cost...
     
     ...the number of members of the general U.S. public that we would 
     confuse because of their familiarity with rems and curies is pretty 
     close to zero...
     
     ...I have yet to run into someone whose life has been disrupted 
     because of the switch to metric units on beverage containers 
     (actually, if we could switch from pints of beer to liters, I would be 
     2.113 times as happy - how about it, Andy?)...
     
     ...most new health physics instruments include readouts in SI units... 
     
     ...all recent health physics software I use has magical input/output 
     conversions to SI units...
     
     ...I have never mistaken a 5 liter car engine as being 60 times 
     smaller than a 300 cubic inch engine, and I've never really found much 
     need for converting between the two...
     
     ...revising procdures and forms to reflect different units would be a 
     small part of the routine procedure/forms updates that I never get 
     around to making anyway...
     
     ...based on Simon Jerome's posting, the U.K.'s monetary system was 
     much worse off than anyone in the ROW suspected.
     
     I sincerely hope the U.S. hangs on to the old units so we can 
     periodically have this issue resurface and hear the excellent 
     rationale for not changing (I have been able to adapt many of the 
     excuses into reasons not to remodel the house when my wife brings it 
     up).
     
     Besides, the U.S. has an image to maintain of being exempt from what 
     the rest of the world does.
     
     Have a good weekend, U.S. and ROW!
     
     Vincent King
     vincent.king@doegjpo.com