Canada is a metric country. We started adopting the metric system in 1970 and in 1971 we got the Weights and Measures Act. But even though we are officially a metric country, it is still common to use the imperial system in everyday life. For example, my driver's license says 190 cm, but I would never tell someone this, unless I were in Europe. I would use feet and inches.
The other area where it is common to use the imperial system is in construction and real estate. Officially, all drawings submitted to a municipality need to be in metric. Typically millimeters are used, meaning a common residential floor-to-floor height in Toronto works out to something like 2950 or 3000 if you want 9 feet clear to the underside of each slab.
As you can see, in design and construction it is very common to switch back and forth between millimeters and feet/inches. Marketing floor plans are typically always in square feet as well. A lot of this, I'm sure, has to do with our historical ties to the UK and our deep integration with the US market.
But the reality is that switching back and forth is inefficient, and imperial weights and measures feel like a random and outdated system. Nate Bargatze does a hilarious job of highlighting that in this SNL skit called Washington's Dream. So I don't know about you, but I'm ready to go full metric. I wonder what it will take for the US to finally get on board with the rest of the world.
(Thanks to my business partner Lucas for sharing the above skit with me. I'm a big Nate Bargatze fan.)
Cover photo by patricia serna on Unsplash
I find regional accents fascinating.
I generally think that Toronto has a fairly neutral accent. But then again, when I lived in Philadelphia, I used to notice the accident every time I came home. Maybe it is because I had adopted a bit of the Philly accent. For the record, I never picked up “youse.”
According to some classifications, most of Western and Central Canada would fall under “General Canadian.” But I find that there are noticeable differences between the accents in Toronto and, say, Calgary. Really there are differences even within the Greater Toronto Area.
CityLab has a recent article up about why city accents are fading in the US midwest. They chalk it up to two main factors: education and geographic mobility. But I also wonder if today’s online connectivity isn’t muting some of the local varietals.
That’s the interesting thing about accents, they – much like the language itself – are constantly changing and evolving. On that note, I’ll end with this classic parody of the Chicago accent: Da Bulls!
Canada is a metric country. We started adopting the metric system in 1970 and in 1971 we got the Weights and Measures Act. But even though we are officially a metric country, it is still common to use the imperial system in everyday life. For example, my driver's license says 190 cm, but I would never tell someone this, unless I were in Europe. I would use feet and inches.
The other area where it is common to use the imperial system is in construction and real estate. Officially, all drawings submitted to a municipality need to be in metric. Typically millimeters are used, meaning a common residential floor-to-floor height in Toronto works out to something like 2950 or 3000 if you want 9 feet clear to the underside of each slab.
As you can see, in design and construction it is very common to switch back and forth between millimeters and feet/inches. Marketing floor plans are typically always in square feet as well. A lot of this, I'm sure, has to do with our historical ties to the UK and our deep integration with the US market.
But the reality is that switching back and forth is inefficient, and imperial weights and measures feel like a random and outdated system. Nate Bargatze does a hilarious job of highlighting that in this SNL skit called Washington's Dream. So I don't know about you, but I'm ready to go full metric. I wonder what it will take for the US to finally get on board with the rest of the world.
(Thanks to my business partner Lucas for sharing the above skit with me. I'm a big Nate Bargatze fan.)
Cover photo by patricia serna on Unsplash
I find regional accents fascinating.
I generally think that Toronto has a fairly neutral accent. But then again, when I lived in Philadelphia, I used to notice the accident every time I came home. Maybe it is because I had adopted a bit of the Philly accent. For the record, I never picked up “youse.”
According to some classifications, most of Western and Central Canada would fall under “General Canadian.” But I find that there are noticeable differences between the accents in Toronto and, say, Calgary. Really there are differences even within the Greater Toronto Area.
CityLab has a recent article up about why city accents are fading in the US midwest. They chalk it up to two main factors: education and geographic mobility. But I also wonder if today’s online connectivity isn’t muting some of the local varietals.
That’s the interesting thing about accents, they – much like the language itself – are constantly changing and evolving. On that note, I’ll end with this classic parody of the Chicago accent: Da Bulls!
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