Talking about some weird units of measurements

Hi!  Thanks for reading this episodes, and today we're diving into the ten units of measurement you've likely never heard of, by Ian Forty. While the metric system efficiently handles weights and distances globally, the US still clings to the Imperial system. Most people are comfortable measuring height in feet—a unit supposedly based on the length of a dead English king's foot.

There are some common units currently using in the world like: length, mass, temperature, current, area, volume, intensity, etc. 

Most countries around the world currently use the Metric System. In The United States, the U.S. Standard Measurement System, or the Imperial Units of Measurement, are used. The imperial units of measurement were formalized in 1832 from English units that were used in the British Empire before the United States became an independent country.

Americans use the U. S. Standard Measurement system or Imperial Units of Measurement for personal or social use, but use the Metric System for science, medicine, some sections of industry, and some government and military areas.

Despite the common use of units like miles or kilometers, there are many obscure measurements out there. Let's explore some you might find surprising.

Number 1: Batman

From the Ottoman Empire, a batman weighs 16.7 pounds. Dating back to the 14th century, it was used in Central Asia for trade, similar to how bushels or kilograms are used today.

Number 2: Micromort

A micromort measures a one-in-a-million chance of death. For example, skydiving has a risk of five micromorts, while base jumping is significantly higher at 430 micromorts.

Number 3: Millihelen

A millihelen quantifies beauty, inspired by Helen of Troy, whose face supposedly launched a thousand ships. One millihelen is the beauty needed to launch a single ship, humorously grading attractiveness on a scale.

Number 4: Poronkusema

This Finnish unit measures the distance a reindeer can walk before needing to urinate, approximately 7.5 kilometers (4.7 miles). It highlights the practical and unique aspects of traditional measurements.

Number 5: Noggin

A noggin is a unit for measuring liquid, roughly equivalent to a quarter or half pint. The term has historical roots and can also be equal to a gill, making it a somewhat inconsistent measure.

Number 6: Cool

A cool is a humorous unit of surreality. Originating from the now-defunct search engine Cuil, which provided bizarre search results, a cool measures one level of abstraction away from reality, quantifying the absurdity of a situation.

Number 7: Megadeath

Megadeath, a term often associated with heavy metal music, is actually a unit measuring deaths in millions, typically from nuclear explosions. For example, if a city with 2.6 million people were obliterated, it would result in 2.6 megadeaths.

Number 8: Slug

A slug is a unit of mass equivalent to about 32.2 pounds. The term is quite fitting for a heavy, slimy creature and is used in physics to measure mass in the Imperial system.

Number 9: Butt

A butt is an old unit for measuring wine. The term "buttload" originates from this measurement. A butt equals two hogsheads. One hogshead is about 250 liters (66 gallons), making a butt approximately 500 liters (132 gallons). However, the size of a hogshead can vary, so a butt might not be consistent across different sources.

Number 10: Smoot

A Smoot equals 5 feet 7 inches. In 2011, Google Earth introduced the Smoot as a measurement option, sparking curiosity. Named after Oliver Smoot, this unit emerged in 1958 when he was an MIT student. As part of a fraternity pledge, Smoot had to measure a bridge using his own height. The bridge measured 364.4 Smoots, plus an ear.

Thanks for joining with me. Hopefully you learned about some mysterious topics. Hopefully we will see in different topics in next time. Let me know if I mispronounced anything despite my research, and have a nice day!