Measurement Systems: Comparison, Challenges, and Software Solutions

This report analyzes the challenges and differences between the English and metric measurement systems. It explores the historical context of the English system's continued use, highlighting the economic factors that have contributed to its persistence. The report discusses the disadvantages of the English system, particularly the complexities of unit conversion, and its impact on international trade. It then introduces software solutions, such as Aerospace Toolbox and MATLAB, that facilitate unit conversion, reducing errors and improving efficiency in engineering applications. The report underscores the importance of these software tools in streamlining the conversion process, offering a practical approach to address the challenges posed by different measurement systems. The report also references supporting literature on the topic to further emphasize the concepts and discussions within.

Running head: MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS
MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS
Name of the Student
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Author note

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1. United States uses the English system even today
The reason for not adopting the metric system is simply said to be money along with
time. At the time of Industrial Revolution, the expensive manufacturing plants were the major
source of American jobs as well as the consumer products. The country was following the
Imperial System at that time this system continues as switching the system would mean
investment of time as well as money (Treese & STEVEN, 2018). Many believe that not
adopting the metric system makes the country different and unique from others. This gives
them a feeling of a leader rather than a follower.
2. The last attempt to move to metric system
In the year 1973, the American National Metric Council was established. It was given
the responsibility to plan and coordinate all the metric activities related to different sectors in
U.S. Congress came up with new encouragement for U.S. industrial metrication in Omnibus
Foreign Trade and Competitiveness Act. The Metric Conversion Act of 1975 was amended
by this legislation and “metric system” was give then tag of “the Preferred system of weights
and measures for United States trade and commerce” (Sulistyo, 2015). On 31st of December
2012, there was a petition made to the White House regarding the adoption of metric system
as the standard system in U.S.
3. Disadvantages of using English system
The major disadvantaged of the English system is difficulty in conversion from a
specific unit to other. For example it is difficult to convert feet to miles, gallons to pints and
many more as such. Remembering a square mile is equal to 640 acres is tough and thus it can
pose a disadvantage in spheres of trade. The countries using metric system have an added
advantage of easy conversions. The English system uses complicated conversions that can be
a hindrance in case of trade. When competing on international contract the companies can
face problems as they can be rejected for using the English measurement system.

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4. Software solving the challenge
There are various softwares that can solve this challenge by helping the users to
convert certain value from one system to the other. With the help of these softwares user can
fed a value to the system along with the unit it is in and the unit it is needed to be converted
into. The softwares will process the input and give the appropriate output. The conversion
will hence be done.
5. Engineering software that can be used
Engineering softwares such as Aerospace Toolbox Software have the functions of use
unit and unit conversion. This software helps in conversion of unit from one system to
another. The conversion of units is a vital factor as it is complicated and can mess up work if
done wrong. Thus softwares can be developed to perform these functions so that there is less
or no errors made during conversion of units. For this purpose, engineering softwares make
use of computer programming languages such as MATLAB (Moore, 2017).

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References
Moore, H. (2017). MATLAB for Engineers. Pearson.
Sulistyo, G. H. (2015). ENGLISH AS A MEASUREMENT STANDARD IN THE
NATIONAL EXAMINATION: SOME GRASSROOTS'VOICE. TEFLIN
journal, 20(1), 1-24.
Treese, S. A., & STEVEN, A. (2018). History and measurement of the base and derived
units. Springer.