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0 points5424585y ago0 comments

At risk of asking a stupid question, why is that easier than moving a decimal point around?

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5 comments · 2 top-level

evanb5y ago· 3 in thread

It’s much easier to cut something in half and half again, to get 0.25 then it is to cut something in fifths to get 0.2, for example. So if you’re a proficient carpenter you have all sorts of tricks and geometrical constructions that let you work quickly without necessarily making a precision measurement or taking out a measuring tape.

shalmanese5y ago

Imperial gets tricky real quick as soon as you need to mix additions/subtractions with multiplication/division which happens surprisingly often in building.

eg: imagine you have a 5 & 1/2 foot cabinet with 4 equal sections framed out with 3/4" boards, what is the height of each section? It's (5 & 1/2' - (5 * 3/4")) / 4 which I guarantee nobody is working out in their head easily.

systemvoltage5y ago

Metric system or Imperial system; we could all benefit if we, humans, had 12 fingers!

Decimal system isn’t our finest legacy. If we had to go back in time, we’d change history by choosing duodecimal system from the get go.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duodecimal

potiuper5y ago

Senary seems most optimal.

emodendroket5y ago

The level of precision offered by that is too high for just one-man woodwork or something, I guess is the point.

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