Jul 1 2017

SYSK Selects: Why isn't the U.S. on the metric system?

Selects 36 min 3 movies discussed
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In this week's SYSK Select episode, the U.S. stands proudly defiant and the world looks at Americans as dopes for the U.S.'s stubborn refusal to go metric. However, the States have been going metric for about 150 years. Find out what's the haps in this weighty and measured episode of SYSK.

AI Summary

# Summary

In this episode, Josh and Chuck dive deep into why the United States hasn't fully adopted the metric system like most other industrialized nations, even though the answer might surprise you. They trace the metric system's origins back to a French monk in the 1600s and follow its journey through the French Revolution and Napoleon's conquests, while explaining why America kept getting left out of the metric party. Along the way, you'll learn about feet and inches being based on actual body parts, discover that a meter is now defined by how fast light travels through a vacuum, and find out that the US is actually way more metric than you probably realize—the government just doesn't like to talk about it.


Movies Discussed

Hey Dude
Hey Dude
1989
★ 6.8
"Hey Dude the 90s called David Lasher and Christine Taylor, stars of the cult classic show Hey Dude — Mentioned multiple times in podcast advertisements for the spinoff podcast 'Hey Dude the 90s Called'"
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
1982 1h 54m
★ 7.2
"AOL Instant Messenger and the dial-up sound like poltergeist — Referenced in advertisement as a comparison to the dial-up internet sound from the 90s"
The Da Vinci Code
The Da Vinci Code
2006 PG-13 2h 29m
★ 6.7
"Tom Hanks would have found it though — Josh jokingly mentions the meter being buried in the Louvre catacombs, and Chuck references Tom Hanks finding it" — Chuck

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