Author Archives: admin

Transport for London raises the bar on vehicle signs

Metric Views is pleased to give credit where it’s due, and this week it is due to Transport for London (TfL) for raising the bar on the signage of vehicle restrictions. We have previously criticised the signing at the Rotherhithe … Continue reading

Posted in Road signs, Transport | Tagged , , | 19 Comments

Will the new Parliament be more pro-metric?

Although it is widely assumed that the next Parliament (to be elected no later than June 2010) will contain more Conservative and fewer Labour MP’s, is it possible that they may be more sympathetic to completing the metric changeover?  (Article … Continue reading

Posted in General | Tagged | 27 Comments

Marathon facts

As an alternative to Budget gloom, one of our regular contributors, Martin Vlietstra, provides some topical information about the marathon.

Posted in History | 9 Comments

A sticky problem with symbols

As a result of having to use two systems of measurement, many in the UK are familiar with neither. Philip Bladon, a regular contributor to MetricViews, draws our attention to yet another example.

Posted in Consumer affairs | 12 Comments

Just how big is a trillion?

Media interest has recently focussed on the effects of the credit crunch. The UK’s stalled metric changeover is all but forgotten. John Frewen-Lord has, perhaps tongue-in-cheek, succeeded in linking these issues while providing another example of the superiority of metric … Continue reading

Posted in General | 20 Comments

Update on the fires in Australia

Our correspondent down-under brings us up-to-date on the recent catastrophic fires in the state of Victoria. Pat Naughtin wrote on 5 March:

Posted in Education, General | 1 Comment

Free-for-all on packages sizes, but no help for consumers?

The Government has published its decisions on deregulating package sizes (as required by a 2007 EU Directive), including advice for business.  But so far no advice for consumers.

Posted in Consumer affairs | 14 Comments

Will science training for MPs help?

A report in the Times that new MPs are to get some scientific training poses the question: will this help them to understand why we need to scrap non-scientific imperial units and embrace the modern metric system? (Article based on … Continue reading

Posted in Education, General, Technical | 8 Comments

Hackney Council gets it right

Local Councils get a lot of stick, often undeserved, so when they do something right, we should congratulate them. So hats off to the London Borough of Hackney for striking a blow for genuine consumer protection – that is, for … Continue reading

Posted in Consumer affairs | 15 Comments

Seventh UK scientist honoured by CGPM

The contribution of British engineers and scientists to the development of the international metric system is well known.  What is less well known is that in addition to the six SI units that are named after British scientists and engineers, … Continue reading

Posted in Technical | Leave a comment