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Why the US measures in feet
4 chapters
76 assets
by hank · 14 jul 2026
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Chapter 1
The pirate attack on metric standards
1
Jefferson's quest for a base-ten system
2
The doomed voyage of Joseph Dombey
3
How Caribbean privateers hijacked the metric system
4
A missed opportunity for Congress
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Chapter 2
The Industrial Revolution lock-in
1
How American factories locked in inches
2
The immense financial cost of retooling
3
The power of standardized American parts
4
The Mendenhall Order of 1893
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Chapter 3
The great metric rebellion of the 1970s
1
The Metric Conversion Act of 1975
2
The fatal flaw of voluntary transition
3
Public outrage and the metric backlash
4
The unique Interstate 19 experiment
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Chapter 4
The hidden metric reality of modern America
1
The two-liter soda bottle success
2
Dual labeling on supermarket shelves
3
The metric military and science
4
The costly Mars Orbiter mix-up
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YOUR GOAL
Master of Why the US measures in feet
