Finally Rubbing Off?
Within the past few years, more and more Americans seem to be warming up to the concept and have begun using decimals in their everyday lives. Certainly the growing number of metric labels on many foods, drinks, health care, cleaners and other various products are clear indicators that the average American consumer should probably start learning to accept decimal numbers.
This goes for geography as well. GPS unit sales to the nonmilitary population are on the rise and most (if not all) GPS units display a location using decimals. One can expect hiking, boating, driving, or any other type of navigational information to be in this same format, no matter the scale, map projection, or elevation.
As the rest of the world moves forward with metric standards, the United States government will most likely feel more pressure (especially from Europe) to go totally metric for global trading purposes. Once the population finally accepts that change is coming, decimal numbers will be even more abundant and it will filter down through every aspect of American industry.
Don't Panic
For those hikers, boaters, drivers, orienteering students, land surveyors and others who may be used to using only D/M/S, don't worry. The conversions are out there, and it's easier than you think to get results from them. Latitude and longitude lines certainly aren't going anywhere - we'll always have those to rely on - so for now, get ready and warm up that calculator!Len Morse earned a B.S. in Geography from Towson State University and has been with the FAA for approximately 14.61 years.
