1 00:00:04,200 --> 00:00:07,240 Speaker 1: Hey, and welcome to the short Stuff. I'm Josh Fahrenheit Clark, 2 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:11,360 Speaker 1: there's Chuck, Celsius Bryant and Jerry Kelvin Rowland is here 3 00:00:11,400 --> 00:00:16,600 Speaker 1: with us too, And Dave is there a fourth measure 4 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:23,279 Speaker 1: of temperature? Mamuh, Muggy, Dave, Dave, Muggy see is here 5 00:00:23,440 --> 00:00:24,080 Speaker 1: in spirit? 6 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:25,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm not sure what just happened. 7 00:00:25,640 --> 00:00:30,840 Speaker 1: To me, Muggy. That was great, Chuck, Uh. 8 00:00:31,680 --> 00:00:34,240 Speaker 2: Celsius and fahrenheit as something we've been talking about a 9 00:00:34,320 --> 00:00:38,239 Speaker 2: little bit lately on the show. Sometimes we do that 10 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:44,400 Speaker 2: what do you call it, conversion, conversion, almost a transformation, 11 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:48,920 Speaker 2: the same thing. Sometimes we do that conversion. Sometimes we don't, 12 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:51,199 Speaker 2: and we you know, some people ask us to and 13 00:00:51,560 --> 00:00:54,000 Speaker 2: sometimes we remember, so we apologize if we don't often 14 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:55,240 Speaker 2: do that conversion. 15 00:00:55,400 --> 00:01:00,320 Speaker 1: Yeah, we're selective, Okay, Yeah, because here we're here in 16 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:02,840 Speaker 1: the United States, which means we're all about farrenheight. So 17 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:05,200 Speaker 1: really it would just make sense for us to convert 18 00:01:05,240 --> 00:01:08,360 Speaker 1: everything to celsius. Yeah, when we're talking about temperature, because 19 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:11,319 Speaker 1: basically the rest of the world is all about celsius. 20 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:13,320 Speaker 1: We'll talk about that in a little bit. First, Chuck, 21 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 1: I want to throw back. I don't remember what episode 22 00:01:16,080 --> 00:01:19,440 Speaker 1: it was, but we mentioned a guy named Simohaya who 23 00:01:19,480 --> 00:01:21,360 Speaker 1: is known as the White Death of World War two. 24 00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:25,319 Speaker 1: He was finish and he killed like more Nazis than 25 00:01:25,360 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 1: anyone else, and he was just a simple farm hand. 26 00:01:27,959 --> 00:01:29,520 Speaker 2: I think, yeah, I think that might have been a 27 00:01:29,560 --> 00:01:30,680 Speaker 2: listener mail or something. 28 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:35,480 Speaker 1: Okay, So we talked about how he would go out 29 00:01:35,520 --> 00:01:38,320 Speaker 1: and shoot people even in weather as low as negative 30 00:01:38,319 --> 00:01:41,880 Speaker 1: forty degrees farentheight, and that set off an avalanche of 31 00:01:41,880 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 1: emails when people say, you didn't have to say fahrenheit 32 00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 1: because negative forty is the same in celsius in farrenheit. 33 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:51,120 Speaker 1: It's the only temperature that's the same in these two 34 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:54,240 Speaker 1: different scales. And we're going to talk about why finally, 35 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:56,120 Speaker 1: after all these years. 36 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 2: That's right and big thanks to HowStuffWorks dot Com and 37 00:01:58,840 --> 00:02:04,320 Speaker 2: Jesslynshields and our old friend Patrick J. Kiger, because they 38 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:06,600 Speaker 2: put it in a very simple way that's very easy 39 00:02:06,600 --> 00:02:12,840 Speaker 2: to understand. Is that these two different temperatures they are 40 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 2: and you know, we'll talk about the differences, but celsius 41 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:21,359 Speaker 2: is larger than fahrenheit, and so when that happens, as 42 00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:24,960 Speaker 2: a runner who is faster than another runner, eventually you 43 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:29,360 Speaker 2: can lap that slower runner, and eventually Celsius will lap fahrenheit, 44 00:02:29,480 --> 00:02:32,400 Speaker 2: and you lap fahrenheit at negative forty. 45 00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:37,079 Speaker 1: Yeah, and the reason why celsius is bigger than fahrenheit 46 00:02:37,639 --> 00:02:41,119 Speaker 1: is because you have more of a temperature range compressed 47 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:44,960 Speaker 1: into a smaller scale, where Farrenheight has the same temperature 48 00:02:45,040 --> 00:02:48,680 Speaker 1: range pulled out over a longer scale. The thing is is, 49 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:51,200 Speaker 1: even when you're talking about that, it still didn't quite 50 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: make sense to me. I'm like, yeah, a runner can 51 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:55,359 Speaker 1: lap a runner when he's slower. I still don't quite 52 00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:58,120 Speaker 1: get it. And then finally I looked up I looked 53 00:02:58,120 --> 00:03:00,960 Speaker 1: it up on I think Quorra came back with the 54 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:03,120 Speaker 1: best explanation. They said, think of it as a graph. 55 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:06,080 Speaker 1: So you've got Farentheight going up at one angle and 56 00:03:06,160 --> 00:03:08,920 Speaker 1: Celsius going up at a slightly different angle. Yeah, if 57 00:03:08,960 --> 00:03:11,520 Speaker 1: you zoom out long enough on that graph or far 58 00:03:11,639 --> 00:03:14,520 Speaker 1: enough by that graph, eventually those two lines are going 59 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:18,040 Speaker 1: to connect with one another. Since they're spreading out from 60 00:03:18,120 --> 00:03:20,360 Speaker 1: zero in different directions, they're not going to connect there, 61 00:03:20,560 --> 00:03:23,520 Speaker 1: but they'll connect behind them in the negative And they 62 00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:27,760 Speaker 1: just so happen to connect at negative forty. 63 00:03:26,720 --> 00:03:30,919 Speaker 2: Right, because Celsius is one. Each degree is one point 64 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:33,280 Speaker 2: eight times larger than fahrenheit. 65 00:03:33,400 --> 00:03:37,880 Speaker 1: Right, yeah, again, because there's more compressed into a smaller scale. 66 00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 2: Right, and that's why you get different freezing and boiling points. 67 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:45,280 Speaker 2: Of course, everyone knows fahrenheit freezes at thirty two and 68 00:03:45,320 --> 00:03:49,200 Speaker 2: boils at two twelve. Celsius is much cleaner and easier 69 00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:52,680 Speaker 2: to remember because water freezes at zero and boils at 70 00:03:52,760 --> 00:03:53,360 Speaker 2: one hundred. 71 00:03:53,800 --> 00:03:55,680 Speaker 1: Yeah. So if you really want to think about it, 72 00:03:55,680 --> 00:03:58,760 Speaker 1: it takes much more sophistication and brain power to understand 73 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:00,760 Speaker 1: farentheight than celsia. 74 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:02,000 Speaker 2: Oh for sure. 75 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: Yeah, as an American. 76 00:04:06,440 --> 00:04:10,000 Speaker 2: Uh so, if you were to do the formula for conversion, 77 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:12,240 Speaker 2: which we don't do. We just look it up and 78 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:13,880 Speaker 2: type it in our little wonder machines. 79 00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 1: Yes, but now we can in our heads even. 80 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 2: Yeah, because if you have a U, if you want 81 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:24,680 Speaker 2: to convert from celsius to fahrenheit, you multiply that temp 82 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:27,359 Speaker 2: in celsius by that one point eight, which is what 83 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:29,720 Speaker 2: we talked about, was a difference in size, and then 84 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:31,880 Speaker 2: you add thirty two. It's that simple. 85 00:04:32,279 --> 00:04:34,839 Speaker 1: That's it. I mean, that's it. So for example, so 86 00:04:35,160 --> 00:04:37,200 Speaker 1: I like I still if I see like a temperature 87 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:40,000 Speaker 1: in celsius something like I have no no idea whether 88 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:43,840 Speaker 1: that's cold, hot, whatever. But let's take twenty degrees celsius 89 00:04:43,880 --> 00:04:46,480 Speaker 1: for example. You want to find out the farentheight equivalent. 90 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:50,520 Speaker 1: You got twenty, which is the celsius degree times one 91 00:04:50,560 --> 00:04:54,440 Speaker 1: point eight. That equals thirty six, okay, and then you 92 00:04:54,560 --> 00:04:56,640 Speaker 1: just add the thirty two. And the reason you're adding 93 00:04:56,720 --> 00:04:59,040 Speaker 1: or subtracting thirty two is because you're trying to zero 94 00:04:59,160 --> 00:05:02,680 Speaker 1: out both scales. You're trying to even themount from the 95 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:05,920 Speaker 1: same starting point. So you either add or subtract thirty two, 96 00:05:05,960 --> 00:05:08,160 Speaker 1: whether you're trying to convert to farent height or celsius. 97 00:05:08,279 --> 00:05:11,039 Speaker 1: So in this case, twenty degrees celsius adds up to 98 00:05:11,080 --> 00:05:14,320 Speaker 1: be sixty eight degrees fahrenheit, and then the same thing 99 00:05:14,400 --> 00:05:17,080 Speaker 1: goes for celsius too. You just flip it around fahrenheit 100 00:05:17,120 --> 00:05:19,400 Speaker 1: minus thirty two divided by one point eight, same thing. 101 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:23,360 Speaker 1: And so if you do that same thing with negative 102 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:26,440 Speaker 1: forty degrees celsius, you get negative forty degrees farent height 103 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:30,200 Speaker 1: and vice versa because they intersect just at that one temperature. 104 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:34,440 Speaker 1: I love it now, it makes sense, yeah, or it 105 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:36,960 Speaker 1: does to me. I'm sure I probably just confused everybody. 106 00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:40,400 Speaker 2: How about we take a break in and we'll just 107 00:05:40,839 --> 00:05:44,799 Speaker 2: talk a little bit about why America, like many things, 108 00:05:44,920 --> 00:05:47,159 Speaker 2: is still hung up on using something that the rest 109 00:05:47,160 --> 00:05:47,840 Speaker 2: of the world does not. 110 00:05:48,320 --> 00:06:06,039 Speaker 3: Right, just like the number of stars and the sky, 111 00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:09,760 Speaker 3: there is so much stuck. 112 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:17,760 Speaker 2: All right. I tease the fact that the United States 113 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:22,400 Speaker 2: of America and a few other places the Bahamas, Belize, 114 00:06:22,760 --> 00:06:24,200 Speaker 2: came in islands somewhere else. 115 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 1: I think Palau. 116 00:06:27,800 --> 00:06:31,040 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, we use fahrenheit, and we stuck with fahrenheit, 117 00:06:31,480 --> 00:06:33,719 Speaker 2: And it's just one of those sort of things that 118 00:06:33,800 --> 00:06:38,520 Speaker 2: Americans stuck to when everyone else over time eventually went 119 00:06:39,200 --> 00:06:42,600 Speaker 2: with celsius or centigrade. No one says centigrade, though, do they. 120 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:46,360 Speaker 1: Well, that was Celsius's original term for it, but I've 121 00:06:46,400 --> 00:06:49,920 Speaker 1: seen it some places eggheads call it centigrade. 122 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:56,159 Speaker 2: A German scientist named Daniel Gabrielle Fahrenheit invented fahrenheit in 123 00:06:56,200 --> 00:07:01,080 Speaker 2: the early seventeen hundreds, and a Swedish astronomer not too 124 00:07:01,160 --> 00:07:05,640 Speaker 2: long I think, a few decades later, named Onders Celsius 125 00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:10,560 Speaker 2: or was it Onders centigrade came up with celsius and 126 00:07:10,600 --> 00:07:13,560 Speaker 2: was like, hey, everybody, this is multiples of ten. It's 127 00:07:13,600 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 2: a lot easier to remember, works well with the metric system, 128 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:18,840 Speaker 2: so let's just use that exactly. 129 00:07:18,920 --> 00:07:21,880 Speaker 1: And the metric people were like, yes, it really does work. 130 00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:26,440 Speaker 1: We're all about powers of ten and ten base counting systems, 131 00:07:26,440 --> 00:07:29,800 Speaker 1: so let's go celsius. We're all in with you. And 132 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:33,720 Speaker 1: Europe just kind of started to go that way. But 133 00:07:33,880 --> 00:07:38,640 Speaker 1: in the English speaking world, centered in the UK, up 134 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:43,600 Speaker 1: until not that long ago, fahrenheit still reigned. And then 135 00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:46,760 Speaker 1: finally in nineteen sixty one, the met Office in the 136 00:07:46,840 --> 00:07:49,920 Speaker 1: UK said, hey, we're going to start talking about temperatures 137 00:07:49,920 --> 00:07:53,080 Speaker 1: in celsius because we look a little backwards compared to 138 00:07:53,080 --> 00:07:57,280 Speaker 1: our European neighbors. And then as that happened, countries that 139 00:07:57,320 --> 00:08:00,760 Speaker 1: were still part of the British Empire, to one degree 140 00:08:00,840 --> 00:08:04,680 Speaker 1: or another, get a degree. They started following suit and 141 00:08:04,720 --> 00:08:08,320 Speaker 1: converting to celsius too. But the US said, hey, King 142 00:08:08,360 --> 00:08:11,040 Speaker 1: of England, Queen England, we don't care whichever it is. 143 00:08:11,080 --> 00:08:13,280 Speaker 1: You can't push us around. We're sticking with fahrenheit. 144 00:08:13,800 --> 00:08:17,560 Speaker 2: Yeah, even though it's kind of funny here. The National 145 00:08:17,640 --> 00:08:21,520 Speaker 2: Weather Service, the US National Weather Surface on the inside, 146 00:08:21,840 --> 00:08:25,360 Speaker 2: they use celsius, but they don't broadcast it out. They 147 00:08:25,360 --> 00:08:28,400 Speaker 2: broadcast it out as fahrenheit because Americans, of course, would 148 00:08:28,400 --> 00:08:29,760 Speaker 2: be like, what are you even talking about with the 149 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 2: Celsia stuff. 150 00:08:30,600 --> 00:08:32,840 Speaker 1: Well, not only that, I mean, if word ever gets 151 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:36,600 Speaker 1: out that the National Weather Service actually uses Celsius internally, 152 00:08:37,559 --> 00:08:40,200 Speaker 1: Americans will show up with pitchforks and torches and just 153 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:41,920 Speaker 1: burn their whole building. 154 00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:44,400 Speaker 2: Down, led by Mo the bartender. 155 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:45,360 Speaker 1: That's right. 156 00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:50,079 Speaker 2: He always led the pitchforks and torch crowd, which always 157 00:08:50,080 --> 00:08:51,120 Speaker 2: show is very funny to me. 158 00:08:51,520 --> 00:08:53,920 Speaker 1: Well, that crowd's big drinker, so he wanted to make 159 00:08:53,960 --> 00:08:55,400 Speaker 1: sure that he was in with them. 160 00:08:55,520 --> 00:08:57,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, but he was always right up front. I love that. 161 00:08:58,040 --> 00:08:59,280 Speaker 1: So you got anything else? 162 00:08:59,800 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 2: I got nothing else. This one was super short. 163 00:09:02,000 --> 00:09:04,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, it short stuff. 164 00:09:04,600 --> 00:09:10,560 Speaker 3: So Stuff you should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. 165 00:09:11,080 --> 00:09:14,240 Speaker 3: For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, 166 00:09:14,440 --> 00:09:17,360 Speaker 3: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.