Why the metric system matters - Matt Anticole

Prevodilac: Ivana Krivokuća Lektor: Tijana Mihajlović

What does the French Revolution

Kakve veze Francuska revolucija ima sa trenutkom

have to do with the time NASA accidentally crashed a $200 million orbiter

kada je NASA slučajno srušila orbiter od 200 miliona dolara

into the surface of Mars?

na površinu Marsa?

Actually, everything.

Zapravo, sasvim su povezani.

That crash happened due to an error

Taj sudar se dogodio usled greške

in converting between two measurement systems,

u konvertovanju između dva sistema merenja,

U.S. customary units

standardnih jedinica mera SAD-a

and their S.I, or metric, equivalence.

i njemu jednakih vrednosti u SI ili metričkom sistemu.

So what's the connection to the French Revolution?

Pa, kakve to ima veze sa Francuskom revolucijom?

Let's explain.

Hajde da objasnimo.

For the majority of recorded human history,

Većim delom zabeležene ljudske istorije,

units like the weight of a grain or the length of a hand weren't exact

jedinice poput težine zrna ili dužine ruke nisu bile precizne

and varied from place to place.

i razlikovale su se od mesta do mesta.

And different regions didn't just use varying measurements.

Nisu samo različite oblasti koristile različite mere.

They had completely different number systems as well.

Takođe su imale i sasvim različite sisteme brojeva.

Do kasnog srednjeg veka, hindu-arapski decimalni sistem

By the late Middle Ages, the Hindu-Arabic decimal system

mostly replaced Roman numerals and fractions in Europe,

uglavnom je zamenio rimske brojeve i razlomke u Evropi,

but efforts by scholars like John Wilkins to promote standard decimal-based measures

ali nastojanja učenjaka poput Džona Vilkinsa

ka promovisanju standardnih mera zasnovanih na decimali

were less successful.

imala su manje uspeha.

With a quarter million different units in France alone,

Sa četvrt miliona različitih jedinica samo u Francuskoj,

any widespread change would require massive disruption.

svaka raširena promena zahtevala bi veliko remećenje,

And in 1789, that disruption came.

a 1789. godine je to remećenje nastupilo.

The leaders of the French Revolution didn't just overthrow the monarchy.

Predvodnici Francuske revolucije nisu samo srušili monarhiju.

They sought to completely transform society

Težili su potpunom preobražaju društva

u skladu sa racionalnim principima prosvetiteljstva.

according to the rational principles of the Enlightenment.

When the new government took power,

Kada je nova vlada preuzela moć,

the Academy of Sciences convened to reform the system of measurements.

sazvana je Akademija nauka da bi reformisala merni sistem.

Old standards based on arbitrary authority or local traditions

Stari standardi zasnovani na proizvoljnom autoritetu

ili lokalnim tradicijama

were replaced with mathematical and natural relationships.

zamenjeni su matematičkim i prirodnim odnosima.

For example, the meter, from the Greek word for measure,

Na primer, metar, od grčke reči za meru,

was defined as 1/10,000,000 between the Equator and North Pole.

definisan je kao 1/10 000 000 između ekvatora i Severnog pola.

And the new metric system was, in the words of the Marquis de Condorcet,

Novi metrički sistem je bio, rečima Markiza de Kondorseta:

"For all people, for all time."

„Za sve ljude, za sva vremena.“

Standardizing measurements had political advantages

Standardizovanje mera takođe je imalo političke prednosti

for the Revolutionaries as well.

za revolucionariste.

Plemstvo više nije moglo manipulisati lokalnim jedinicama

Nobles could no longer manipulate local units to extract more rent from commoners,

da bi izvuklo više kirije od običnih građana,

while the government could collect taxes more efficiently.

dok je vlada mogla da sakuplja porez efikasnije.

Prelaženje na novi republikanski kalendar sa nedeljama od deset dana

And switching to a new Republican Calendar with ten-day weeks

reduced church power by eliminating Sundays.

umanjilo je moć crkve time što je uklonilo nedelje.

Adoption of this new system wasn't easy.

Usvajanje ovog novog sistema nije bilo lako.

In fact, it was a bit of a mess.

Zapravo, pomalo je bilo haotično.

U početku, ljudi su koristili nove mere uporedo sa starima

At first, people used new units alongside old ones,

and the Republican Calendar was eventually abandoned.

i republikanski kalendar je na kraju odbačen.

When Napoléon Bonaparte took power,

Kada je Napoleon Bonaparta preuzeo moć,

he allowed small businesses to use traditional measurements

dozvolio je malim poslovima da koriste tradicionalne mere

iznova definisane u metričkim terminima.

redefined in metric terms.

But the metric system remained standard for formal use,

Međutim, metrički sistem je ostao standard u formalnoj upotrebi

and it spread across the continent, along with France's borders.

i proneo se širom kontinenta, zajedno sa francuskim granicama.

While Napoléon's empire lasted eight years,

Dok je Napoleonovo carstvo trajalo osam godina,

its legacy endured far longer.

njegovo nasleđe je istrajalo znatno duže.

Some European countries reverted to old measurements upon independence.

Neke evropske zemlje su se vratile na stare mere po sticanju nezavisnosti.

Others realized the value of standardization

Druge su uvidele vrednost standardizacije

in an age of international trade.

u dobu međunarodne trgovine.

After Portugal and the Netherlands switched to metric voluntarily,

Nakon što su se Portugalija i Holandija dobrovoljno prebacile na metrički sistem,

other nations followed,

druge nacije su ih sledile,

with colonial empires spreading the system around the world.

dok su kolonijalna carstva širila sistem po celom svetu.

As France's main rival,

Kao glavni protivnik Francuske,

Britain had resisted revolutionary ideas and retained its traditional units.

Britanija se odupirala revolucionarnim idejama

i zadržala svoje tradicionalne jedinice.

But over the next two centuries, the British Empire slowly transitioned,

Međutim, tokom naredna dva veka,

Britansko carstvo je polako pravilo prelaz,

first approving the metric system as an optional alternative

najpre odobrivši metrički sistem kao opcionu alternativu

before gradually making it offical.

pre nego što ga je postepeno ozvaničila.

However, this switch came too late for thirteen former colonies

Međutim, taj prelazak je nastupio prekasno za trinaest bivših kolonija

that had already gained independence.

koje su već stekle nezavisnost.

The United States of America stuck with the English units of its colonial past

Sjedinjene Američke Države su ostale pri engleskim merama kolonijalne prošlosti

and today remains one of only three countries

i danas ostaju jedna od svega tri zemlje

which haven't fully embraced the metric system.

koje nisu potpuno prihvatile metrički sistem.

Despite constant initiatives for metrication,

Uprkos stalnim inicijativama za prelaz na metrički sistem,

many Americans consider units like feet and pounds more intuitive.

mnogi Amerikanci smatraju jedinice poput stope i funte intuitivnijim.

And ironically, some regard the once revolutionary metric system

Ironično, neki smatraju nekada revolucionarni metrički sistem

as a symbol of global conformity.

simbolom globalnog konformizma.

Nevertheless, the metric system is almost universally used in science and medicine,

Ipak, metrički sistem se koristi gotovo univerzalno u nauci i medicini

and it continues to evolve according to its original principles.

i nastavlja da se razvija u skladu sa svojim izvornim principima.

For a long time,

Dugo vremena,

standard units were actually defined by carefully maintained physical prototypes.

standardne jedinice su zapravo definisane

pomoću brižljivo održavanih fizičkih prototipova.

But thanks to improving technology and precision,

Međutim, zahvaljujući sve naprednijoj tehnologiji i preciznosti,

these objects with limited access and unreliable longevity

ti objekti ograničenog pristupa i nepouzdane dugotrajnosti

are now being replaced with standards based on universal constants,

sada su zamenjeni standardima zasnovanim na univerzalnim konstantama,

like the speed of light.

kao što je brzina svetlosti.

Consistent measurements are such an integral part of our daily lives

Dosledne mere dotle predstavljaju sastavni deo našeg svakodnevnog života

that it's hard to appreciate what a major accomplishment for humanity they've been.

da je teško ceniti koliko su bili veliko postignuće za čovečanstvo.

And just as it arose from a political revolution,

Baš kao što je proizašao iz političke revolucije,

the metric system remains crucial for the scientific revolutions to come.

metrički sistem ostaje ključan za buduće naučne revolucije.