this post was submitted on 06 May 2025
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[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 3 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago)

The wacky Fahrenheit scale, invented by Daniel Fahrenheit 300 years ago, was based on a scale concocted by Ole Rømer, an astronomer who was the first to show that light has at a finite speed. On the Romer scale a brine solution freezes at 0 and plain water boils at 60. Why Rømer didn't use the same substance for both measurements is a mystery. Fahrenheight divided Rømer's degrees by 4 to make the scale finer, so in his version the brine froze at 0, normal water at 30, and human body temp was 90. These numbers had to be adjusted later as more accurate thermometers were made.

[–] Pnut@lemm.ee 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

America: fights Germany in the war. Drinks Budweiser and measures in fahrenheit.

[–] resipsaloquitur@lemm.ee 2 points 17 hours ago

Budweiser is an American beer in a Czech style, so… ?

[–] Kolanaki@pawb.social 15 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I don't know, but there are at least 451 of them muthafuckas.

[–] comrade_twisty@feddit.org 42 points 1 day ago (3 children)

Daniel Fahrenheit was a German Physicist!

[–] TripDawkins@jlai.lu 1 points 14 hours ago* (last edited 14 hours ago) (1 children)

and the online translator says it means "driving unity".

[–] Thavron@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago

That would be fahreinheit.

[–] youCanCallMeDragon@lemmy.world 19 points 1 day ago (2 children)

And a Fahrenheit is 1/100 the temperature difference between frozen salt brine and Mrs Fahrenheit’s armpit. Also the answer to how hot it is outside on a scale from 0-100.

[–] Sludgeyy@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (3 children)

Daniel Fahrenheit invented the mercury thermometer.

He wanted 0°F to be as cold as he could create and duplicate. Frozen salt brine.

100°F just happened to be very close to body temperature.

Celcius came after and just stated that at 100°C water froze at 1 atmosphere. 0°C was boiling.

Since then, it's been changed to 0°C being the freezing point.

Also, Celcius is now based on Kelvin. 0K is -273.15°C

They are both outdated systems

Kelvin is the true system

Fahrenheit and Celsius are just still being used by people because they know it.

People who know Celsius think it's easy, people who know Fahrenheit think it's easy.

273.15K for the freezing point of water isn't hard.

Temperature outside ranges from 250K to 310k

Room temperature is about 295K

F has 30° between 70° and 100°

C has 20° between 20° and 40°

K has 15 between 295 and 310

They are all just numbers on different scales that help represent an idea. One isn't necessarily easier than another. 295K as room temperature would scare people, though.

[–] youCanCallMeDragon@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Kelvin is great for math and science. But daily life? Dude. The weather does not need to be reported relative to absolute zero just like the speed of your car doesn’t need to be reported relative to the sun. Also Fahrenheit did famously use his wife’s armpit for the 100 mark that’s why it’s “close to body temperature”.

Another fun fact human body temperature has not always been 98.6 and has been getting lower.

[–] Sludgeyy@lemmy.world 2 points 20 hours ago

I didn't know about the arm pit thing.

To create a scale you have to start somewhere.

To think he measured his wife arm pit to be 100°F and then said, let me make a salt brine mix to get to 0°F. Seems completely backwards.

They had no idea about absolute 0 back then. Coldest thing you can create in a lab consistently at the time was a reasonable 0°

But that's where the scale starts and everything is based on.

Could he have created a colder one but wanted 100° to be close to body temperature. Maybe. But that's not weird. 0 and 100 are important numbers. Most people have an armpit and a way to calibrate their thermometer in a pinch. Axillary method, armpit, is a legit way to take someone temperature.

Fahrenheit has 2° compared to 1° of Celsius. 98, 99, 100, 101. (37, 37, 38, 38). Being 1° off in F isn't as much of an error as being 1° off in C.

You can't just boil water and say, that's 100°C! Pressure matters. To boil water at standard pressure was difficult to recreate at the time. Same for freezing.

[–] Sludgeyy@lemmy.world 1 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

That's the whole point of using Celsius or Fahrenheit. They are both just different representations of Kelvin. But Kelvin is absolute.

If you want your weather scale to go -20 to 40 or 0 to 100. Is debatable.

0°F to 100°F is better for weather

0°C to 100°C is better for water temperature

If you know C, there's no need to learn F for the weather.

If you know F, there's no reason to learn C for the weather.

You don't need to know F or C to read a thermometer. 375°F or 190°C are just numbers you might bake cookies at. No one knows how 375°F or 190°C "feels like"

Things you need to know is if 90°F or 32°C water is safe to get in. Over 100°F is getting dangerous, Over 40°C is getting dangerous.

Normal house hot water is 50°C or 120°F.

Time to cause burns:

120°F or 50°C More than 5 minutes

130°F or 55°C About 30 seconds

140°F or 60°C Less than 5 seconds

150°F or 65°C About 1.5 seconds

160°F or 70°C About 1/2 a second

Aslong as you know a system, you're fine. Fahrenheit isn't like the other US customary units. It is based on the exact same thing Celsius is, Kelvin. Just shown in different numbers. Something like a quart to gallon is a completely made-up measurement and horrible.

[–] cute_noker@feddit.dk 1 points 19 hours ago

Just use Rømer scale, it is what we use for everything.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%B8mer_scale

[–] untorquer@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I put my pizza in the oven at 250k with convection. How long until the crust is brown and the cheese melted?

[–] Reddfugee42@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] untorquer@lemmy.world 3 points 22 hours ago
[–] rumba@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Infinite, 250K that's like cold AC

you need to set it closer to 500K

[–] untorquer@lemmy.world 1 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

These instructions were the worst I JUST WANT MY PIZZAAAAAAA

[–] rumba@lemmy.zip 1 points 22 hours ago

Sounds like you already have it!

Bon Appétit!!!

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[–] MidsizedSedan@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Is it ANY armpit? Or ONLY Mrs Fahrenheits armpit?

[–] pupbiru@aussie.zone 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

the answer to that question is the same as whether a foot as any foot or only king henry’s……. arm

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[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 20 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Fahrenheit is a scale of temperature that Americans don't use for aviation.

My favorite example of mixed units is the standard adiabatic lapse rate, given as 2 degrees C per 1000 feet.

[–] ziggurat@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Isn't a foot defined as 0.3048 meters anyways?

So its really a metric derivative

[–] Reddfugee42@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It starts with metric, so really it's just the next evolution of metric

[–] ziggurat@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Its mors like metric came and colonized it

Keep in mind, the reason it is like this is because its cheaper to base off metric than to define the standard by your self

[–] ColdWater@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Delusional Celsius cosplayer

[–] MehBlah@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

Old and busted Celsius cosplayer.

[–] magic_lobster_party@fedia.io 16 points 1 day ago (7 children)

It’s one of the early games of the French developer Quantic Dream

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