Relocating to the USA

[Lagado]

'You are a slow learner, Winston,' said O'Brien gently.

'How can I help it?' he blubbered. 'How can I help seeing what is in front of my eyes? Two and two are four.'

'Sometimes, Winston. Sometimes they are five. Sometimes they are three. Sometimes they are all of them at once. You must try harder. It is not easy to become sane.'

 

[dbsfgyd1]

2"x4" is the nominal measurement of the lumber as it's milled from raw timber - traditionally the measurement before kiln drying lumber back in the old days. The kiln drying would shrink it down to actual measurements. Been that way for decades, maybe even a century. The 2x6 framed walls in my 100 year old house aren't quite 2" x 6".

For dimensional lumber, these days it's probably more convoluted but the 1/2" missing in each dimension actually helps in builds - let's say where studs meet window frame meets 1/2' drywall. Flush fitting. There's also 2x4 studs that are precut to 92 5/8" to accommodate for top and bottom plates of a standard stud framed wall to reach 96" even. Normal 2x4 stud is 96".

Don't think we're being duped. Kind of like a "pint" of draft beer being served in any number of different sized glasses: 16, 16 5/8, 20oz. It's just a name. A "pint" bottle of beer in Canada is standardized at 341ml. I don't order a "341 mil", I order a "pint".

And thus it has been answered. Thanks dirt dog.

 

[DirtDog]

When you say 2x4, it's understood that you want a 2x4 that has been surfaced to nominal dimensions of 1.5" by 3.5". Two by Four is also easier to say than One and a Half by Three and a Half. I suspect laziness of saying three syllables versus nine played a part, but it's understood that a 2x4 isn't 2" by 4".

EDIT: Here is more than you would ever want to know about dimensional lumber:

https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/misc/miscpub_6409.pdf

TL;DR - rail shipments made local standards obsolete and eventually the 1.5" x 3.5" dimensions became standardized but the 2x4 name remained.

On a job site, it's even lazier. They just get called "2-by".

 

[Deleted member 165050]

It doesn't! We only use pints and miles now. One's for drinking, one's for driving.

Those units seem awful modern, what's wrong with the noggin and the rod?

 

[Deleted member 165050]

The UK was in a massive amount of debt after WW2. Pretty much all the countries in the rest of Europe were forged anew in 1945 so could ignore past debts, which was very handy.

Can't answer that without going all political on yoass. I'll just not agree

 

[Mike N]

Scientists like the metric system too, that's why they are now dubious in the USA. I was wondering why they did not make the clocks metric too. If you are going to make everything else divisible by 10 , why not the minutes. If they did that the US would have been in -

If God intended the metric system, there would have only been 10 apostles.

 

[Lagado]

"It was a bright day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen..."

 

[-Asdfgh-]

Can't answer that without going all political on yoass. I'll just not agree

I shall refer you to the fine documentary The Mouse That Roared.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

I shall refer you to the fine documentary The Mouse That Roared.

Or Dr Strangelove...

 

[friskinator]

2 years ago, my wife and I moved to Canada with the intention of staying long term. She has dual citizenship and was able to sponsor me so I could get on the path to permanent residency. I can tell you first hand that even with being married to a citizen, the immigration process is difficult. We submitted the insane amount of paperwork 3 times before it was approved. It was incredibly detailed, and if you make one mistake, they send it all back to you for correction, then you have to re-submit. And wait.

We ended up only staying a year due to some circumstances beyond our control, but my approval for just the sponsorship still wasn't completed when we left. I'm not even sure how long it would have taken for me to become a permanent resident.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

2 years ago, my wife and I moved to Canada with the intention of staying long term. She has dual citizenship and was able to sponsor me so I could get on the path to permanent residency. I can tell you first hand that even with being married to a citizen, the immigration process is difficult. We submitted the insane amount of paperwork 3 times before it was approved. It was incredibly detailed, and if you make one mistake, they send it all back to you for correction, then you have to re-submit. And wait.

We ended up only staying a year due to some circumstances beyond our control, but my approval for just the sponsorship still wasn't completed when we left. I'm not even sure how long it would have taken for me to become a permanent resident.

2112 days?