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What do metric measures mean to you? They should means a lot. In 1972 Congress talked about changing from the English system of measure to the metric. Some countries have already made the switch. As the use of metric measures increases, you will see a change in your nearby food store. You will see metric units used for weight, volume and length.
Right now, the number of different units you meet in a day’s shopping is puzzling. Weights are shown is ounces and pounds. Liquids are measured in gallons, quarts, pints and fluid ounces. Dry measures are shown in bushels, pecks, dry quarts and pints. However, all of that will be made easier under the metric system. With metric units, weight will be shown only in grams or kilograms. Volume will be shown only in liters or kiloliters. Length will be measured in meters, centimeters or millimeters only. Clearly, metric is much less confusing and will be much easier to use when shopping than the English system.
Some of the most common measurements made in the home are those that take place in cooking and baking. The practice that will be most often followed in metric recipes should not differ from our current practice. Metric “cup and spoon” measures are only slightly larger than the cup and spoon measures we are used to. They can be interchanged. It is only those few ingredients that are now measured by weight (pounds and ounces) that will change a lot in the metric system. To change a recipe to metric, just remember that a pound is about 450 grams and an ounce is about 28 grams.
Sales people in hardware, paint and fabric stores will feel the change to metric. A customer may want to buy lumber or paint or wallpaper. He may give the clerk his measurements in English units. The clerk in turn will have to change the units to metric. At least figuring in metric is not at all difficult. Again, it is easier to use then the English system.
The change over to metric is coming. It should not scare you. It is an easy and simple system to use. For most people, the knowledge of metric units that they learn as customers will help them. Slowly they will get used to using the new system. Who knows, maybe some day the English system will be completely forgotten.
