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What do you find 'weird' about the UK?

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(Edited)
Hi,
I would imagine the floor naming is a bit like a ruler.
The ground floor is floor zero.
The next floor is the first floor.
You don't start a ruler at 1. The end of a ruler is zero - like a ground floor.
By the US naming convention a 12 inch ruler would start at 1 inch and end at 13 inches!
Cheers
Steve
 
My fiance and I get into silly fights over this concept :p
 
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Stevesolar said:
Hi,
I would imagine the floor naming is a bit like a ruler.
The ground floor is floor zero.
The next floor is the first floor.
You don't start a ruler at 1. The end of a ruler is zero - like a ground floor.
By the US naming convention a 12 inch ruler would start at 1 inch and end at 13 inches!
Cheers
Steve
Click to expand...
Now that's an interesting concept Steve. It does have some logic to it, so congratulations. It's the same as age, you don't start at age 1. But I don't think it is likely to be the reason.

I think a more likely reason is that proposed by xabiachica.

xabiachica said:
The ground floor is on the ground. The first floor is the first one above that.
Simple
Click to expand...
That's also logical and more believeable somehow. If it were the ruler idea then you'd have to talk about entering your house on ground zero. :p

OK, so we have a possible reason for that one, what about the other two? Maybe the 'bungalow' prejudice is just a cultural preference based on no real logical reasoning, like many prejudices are. In which case there can be no real answer. But what about falling on the 'floor' when there is no floor. Where does that come from?
 
OldPro said:
The third 'weird' also has some relationship to the first two. In the UK, the word floor is often used to refer to physical ground. 'He fell on the floor' is used when a person falls on the ground outside of a building.

What's weird about that is pretty obvious I'd say. If you fall on the street or in a field, there is no floor, there is only the ground. So why say you fell on the floor? Again, where is the logic in that? Why is it not , 'he fell on the ground'? Indoors floor, outdoors ground.
Click to expand...

That isn't a UK thing, it is more of an ignorance/laziness thing as it is very common here in Canada as well. Personally, it drives me nuts - almost as nits as hearing someone say 'open' and 'close' the lights when they mean turn them on or turn them off.
 
Stevesolar said:
Hi,
Who says the US naming convention is the correct one?
I think you might have a bit too much time on your hands!
Likewise - we could produce a thread about things we find weird in the USA - for instance, why do they have World Series sporting competitions - when they are the only country that is competing?
Cheers
Steve
Click to expand...

With regards to the World Series - we have a Canadian team (used to have two) so there isn't only one country competing. Also, the players come from lots of different countries. There is also the issue that the World Series is so named because it was originally sponsored by the New York World newspaper (although this is debated).
 
OldPro said:
Now that's an interesting concept, Steve. It does have some logic to it, so congratulations. It's the same as age, you don't start at age 1. But I don't think it is likely to be the reason.

I think a more likely reason is that proposed by xabiachica.



That's also logical and more believable somehow. If it were the ruler idea then you'd have to talk about entering your house on ground zero. :p

OK, so we have a possible reason for that one, what about the other two? Maybe the 'bungalow' prejudice is just a cultural preference based on no real logical reasoning, like many prejudices are. In which case there can be no real answer. But what about falling on the 'floor' when there is no floor. Where does that come from?
Click to expand...
Actually, the Japanese start you off at 1 as soon you're born... i.e. you're in your first year of life.

My nephew was born 01 October 2010 and, under the Japanese way of counting, would be considered to be 1 (because he was in his first year of life). Roll on 1 January 2011 and the Japanese would have him pegged at age 2 even though he's only 3 moths old. Fast forward to 01 October 2011, he's now officially 1 year old (because he's been alive for 365 days) and still 2 under the Japanese count (he's still in his second year of life). 01 January 2013 would have seen him aged 3 by the Japanese system.

Under the Japanese way of counting, everyone automatically has a year added to their age, regardless of what month they were born in.... Prince George would be considered to be 4 years old on 01/01/2016, even though chronologically, he'd only be 2½. Princess Charlotte will be 2 years old at the new year which, when you think about it, is just crazy, as she's just barely 4 months old at the moment.
 
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colchar said:
That isn't a UK thing, it is more of an ignorance/laziness thing as it is very common here in Canada as well. Personally, it drives me nuts - almost as nits as hearing someone say 'open' and 'close' the lights when they mean turn them on or turn them off.
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Maybe English isn't their first language. We open and close lights in Spanish
 
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WestCoastCanadianGirl said:
Actually, the Japanese start you off at 1 as soon you're born... i.e. you're in your first year of life.

My nephew was born 01 October 2010 and, under the Japanese way of counting, would be considered to be 1 (because he was in his first year of life). Roll on 1 January 2011 and the Japanese would have him pegged at age 2 even though he's only 3 moths old. Fast forward to 01 October 2011, he's now officially 1 year old (because he's been alive for 365 days) and still 2 under the Japanese count (he's still in his second year of life). 01 January 2013 would have seen him aged 3 by the Japanese system.

Under the Japanese way of counting, everyone automatically has a year added to their age, regardless of what month they were born in.... Prince George would be considered to be 4 years old on 01/01/2016, even though chronologically, he'd only be 2½. Princess Charlotte will be 2 years old at the new year which, when you think about it, is just crazy, as she's just barely 4 months old at the moment.
Click to expand...
That is just way too confusing!
 
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colchar said:
That isn't a UK thing, it is more of an ignorance/laziness thing as it is very common here in Canada as well. Personally, it drives me nuts - almost as nits as hearing someone say 'open' and 'close' the lights when they mean turn them on or turn them off.
Click to expand...
Huh, I've never heard anyone in Canada refer to falling on the floor when outdoors colchar. Are you sure it isn't an immigrant? ie. someone who was not schooled in Canada. My teachers would not have allowed it, nor would they have allowed open/close for lights.

Another of my pet peeves with words is people who say or write, 'I am wanting' instead of 'I want'. I've noticed that most prevalent but not exclusive to, Australians.
 
(Edited)
Hi,
A few that annoy me:-
LCD display - so they are saying Liquid Crystal Display display!
Pacific - when they mean specific!
"We have a satellite on our roof" - no you don't - you have a dish that receives TV signals from a satellite!
The above seem not to have country borders!
Cheers
Steve
 
(Edited)
WestCoastCanadianGirl said:
Actually, the Japanese start you off at 1 as soon you're born... i.e. you're in your first year of life. My nephew was born 01 October 2010 and, under the Japanese way of counting, would be considered to be 1 (because he was in his first year of life). Roll on 1 January 2011 and the Japanese would have him pegged at age 2 even though he's only 3 moths old. Fast forward to 01 October 2011, he's now officially 1 year old (because he's been alive for 365 days) and still 2 under the Japanese count (he's still in his second year of life). 01 January 2013 would have seen him aged 3 by the Japanese system. Under the Japanese way of counting, everyone automatically has a year added to their age, regardless of what month they were born in.... Prince George would be considered to be 4 years old on 01/01/2016, even though chronologically, he'd only be 2½. Princess Charlotte will be 2 years old at the new year which, when you think about it, is just crazy, as she's just barely 4 months old at the moment.
Click to expand...
That was the old way of counting age before WW2 called kazue no toshi, but nowadays practically nobody uses it except in very special context such as determining your birth sign and significant anniversary such as kanreki (60 years). I was partly educated in Japan and went to school there.
 
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