xkcd #3138: Dimensional Lumber Tape Measure
Title text:
A person with two watches is never sure what time it is, especially if I got them one of the watches.
Transcript:
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Source: https://xkcd.com/3138/
My sawyer showed me a measuring tape graduated in tenths of a foot. Someone manufactured that for some reason.
As a European, it took me a while to realize what’s wrong with that. Even though I’ve been living in the US for almost 14 years now.
Oh yeah, we use these “decimal feet” rulers at my job, for surveying. Nobody bothered to tell me ahead of time, so my first few days out in the field were pretty much a complete waste. I still maintain they are an abomination, the worst of both systems.
If it’s used for surveying, aren’t those survey feet? (a survey foot is 1.000002 US customary feet). Dividing a survey foot by 12 would not be technically an inch, even though it’s only a couple millionths off.