Yes, "move the picture about 1ft to the left" is a more useful term than "move it 30cm to the left"

Again it goes back to the human centric approach. We can innately estimate foot / inch sizes better than m / cm

freetx

You could make a similar point about pounds and feet being more precise than kg and meters. When you get to the scale of miles vs km, I doubt it makes much difference to anyone.

Undisciplined

ideasfromtheedge

Why do Americans put so much store in their measurement system?

Lovely response. I thoroughly endorse your human-centric approach and will give it a mental spin next time I need to notice the temperature.

However, I have to say I rarely, if ever, pay attention to the actual temperature number in daily life. I would typically step out into that crisp 50s morning without having mentally noted the number. in fact the only time I do actually think of a number is when there's frost on the ground.

Now how about weights and lengths?

As somebody who measures a horse in hands, I'm not seeking what's right or wrong or looking to change anybody's mind. I would simply love an eloquent explanation such as the one above.