have to do with the time NASA accidentally crashed a $200 million orbiter

跟美國太空總署在火星表面上意外摧毀了20億的人造衛星有何關聯?

into the surface of Mars?

跟美國太空總署在或火星表面上意外摧毀了20億的人造衛星有何關聯?

Actually, everything.

事實上，

That crash happened due to an error

這場碰撞是由於

in converting between two measurement systems,

兩個度量衡系統的轉換錯誤造成的

U.S. customary units

美國慣用的單位

and their S.I, or metric, equivalence.

和國際單位制或是公制等值

So what's the connection to the French Revolution?

這跟法國革命有何關連呢?

Let's explain.

讓我解釋一下

For the majority of recorded human history,

大多數人類的歷史記載

units like the weight of a grain or the length of a hand weren't exact

糧食的重量或是一支手的長度單位都不準確

and varied from place to place.

還會因環境而改變

And different regions didn't just use varying measurements.

而且不同的地區不只是用不同的度量衡

They had completely different number systems as well.

他們還有完全不同的數字系統

By the late Middle Ages, the Hindu-Arabic decimal system

在中世紀晚期，印度-阿拉伯數字系統

mostly replaced Roman numerals and fractions in Europe,

幾乎取代歐洲的羅馬數字

but efforts by scholars like John Wilkins to promote standard decimal-based measures

學者 John Wilkins致力於推廣十進位的標準單位上

were less successful.

並不是很成功

With a quarter million different units in France alone,

光是法國就有25萬個不同的單位

any widespread change would require massive disruption.

任何規模的改變都會帶來巨大的變動

And in 1789, that disruption came.

在西元1789年那場變動發生了

The leaders of the French Revolution didn't just overthrow the monarchy.

法國革命的領袖不只是推翻了君主政體

They sought to completely transform society

藉由啟發的理性原則，他們想完全改造社會

according to the rational principles of the Enlightenment.

藉由啟發的理性原則，他們想完全改造社會

When the new government took power,

當新政府掌權

the Academy of Sciences convened to reform the system of measurements.

科學研究院便開會改革度量衡系統

Old standards based on arbitrary authority or local traditions

以專制權威及傳統為基礎的舊制

were replaced with mathematical and natural relationships.

被數學及自然界的關係所取代

For example, the meter, from the Greek word for measure,

舉例來說，公尺，來自度量用的希臘文

was defined as 1/10,000,000 between the Equator and North Pole.

被定義為在赤道及北極點中間的一千萬分之一

And the new metric system was, in the words of the Marquis de Condorcet,

而新的公制系統則是來自馬奎斯·孔多塞

For all people, for all time.

對任何時代及任何人來說

Standardizing measurements had political advantages

使度量衡標準化有政治上的優勢

for the Revolutionaries as well.

對改革者來說也是

Nobles could no longer manipulate local units to extract more rent from commoners,

貴族再也無法用當地的單位向平民強取更多的租金，

while the government could collect taxes more efficiently.

而政府收稅也會更有效率

And switching to a new Republican Calendar with ten-day weeks

傳換成新共和政體的一周十天制

reduced church power by eliminating Sundays.

周日的取消降低了教會的權力

Adoption of this new system wasn't easy.

要採納這個新制度並不簡單

In fact, it was a bit of a mess.

事實上，是有點混亂的

At first, people used new units alongside old ones,

首先，人民將新單位跟舊單位混用在一起

and the Republican Calendar was eventually abandoned.

最後共和政體的日曆被廢除

When Napoléon Bonaparte took power,

當拿破崙掌權

he allowed small businesses to use traditional measurements

他允許小規模的貿易可採用被定義為公制的傳統度量衡進行

redefined in metric terms.

他允許小規模的貿易可採用被定義為公制的傳統度量衡進行

But the metric system remained standard for formal use,

但公制保留了正式的標準用途

and it spread across the continent, along with France's borders.

並且橫跨大陸，拓展到法國的邊界

While Napoléon's empire lasted eight years,

而拿破崙帝國持續了八年

its legacy endured far longer.

他的附庸國忍受很久了

Some European countries reverted to old measurements upon independence.

一些歐洲國家恢復舊有的度量衡，緊接著獨立

Others realized the value of standardization

在這國際貿易的時代，其他國家意識到了「標準」的重要性

in an age of international trade.

在這國際貿易的時代，其他國家意識到了「標準」的重要性

After Portugal and the Netherlands switched to metric voluntarily,

葡萄牙和荷蘭也轉換成公制後

other nations followed,

其他國家也紛紛仿效

with colonial empires spreading the system around the world.

殖民帝國將這個系統流傳至全世界

As France's main rival,

身為法國的主要對手

Britain had resisted revolutionary ideas and retained its traditional units.

英國抵制這革命性的潮流並保留傳統的單位

But over the next two centuries, the British Empire slowly transitioned,

但接下來的兩個世紀，英國也慢慢的轉變了

first approving the metric system as an optional alternative

在逐漸使公制變成官方用的單位前

before gradually making it offical.

英國終於允許了公制的流通

However, this switch came too late for thirteen former colonies

但這場改變來得太慢，

that had already gained independence.

有十三個殖民地已經爭取到獨立

The United States of America stuck with the English units of its colonial past

美國維持英國過去殖民的單位

and today remains one of only three countries

至今只有還未全部使用公制的三個國家和美國還保留了這個單位

which haven't fully embraced the metric system.

至今只有還未全部使用公制的三個國家和美國還保留了這個單位

Despite constant initiatives for metrication,

儘管對公制不變的創始精神

many Americans consider units like feet and pounds more intuitive.

許多美國人還是認為尺和磅這類的單位比較好用

And ironically, some regard the once revolutionary metric system

諷刺的是，有些人認為以前革命性的公制系統

as a symbol of global conformity.

是一個全球化的象徵

Nevertheless, the metric system is almost universally used in science and medicine,

然而，公制系統幾乎普遍的運用在科學和醫藥領域

and it continues to evolve according to its original principles.

並且依據最初的原理持續的發展

For a long time,

有很長一段時間，

standard units were actually defined by carefully maintained physical prototypes.

標準單位(英制)其實是視為被仔細保留的物理原型

But thanks to improving technology and precision,

但幸虧不斷進步改良的科技及精準度

these objects with limited access and unreliable longevity

這些限制多又不可靠的東西

are now being replaced with standards based on universal constants,

現在已經被全世界都通用的公制(國際單位制)所取代

like the speed of light.

例如光速

Consistent measurements are such an integral part of our daily lives

一貫的度量衡是我們生活不可或缺的一部分

that it's hard to appreciate what a major accomplishment for humanity they've been.

實在很難去鑑別他們對於人類的重要貢獻

And just as it arose from a political revolution,

如同它從政治革命的出現

the metric remains crucial for the scientific revolutions to come.

公制為科學革命的來臨保留了關鍵重要性