Being able to predict and overcome the many influences on the bullet as it traveled that distance repeatedly is a testament to both the skill and the equipment of the shooter. Personally I'm curious as to how the problems associated with passing through the
transonic region were overcome (not having a lot of practical experience with extreme range shooting or this caliber myself, I'm probably missing something entirely
).
Not to take away from the shooter's accomplishment, but I think even he'd admit that he had a lot of luck on his side, which is why such extreme shots are rare despite the capability of the equipment and the people who use them. Having such ideal conditions, even in an arid environment, took rare luck to begin with.
accustomed to is the key to your whole argument.
It plays the largest role, yes, and requires that whatever replaces an entrenched system of measurement to be significantly better in the common experience of people's lives, and frankly the metric system isn't (although I use it all the time myself because it's the basis of the standard units used in science and most engineering).
surely you're not seriously saying that a system of measurement based on a long dead monarch's foot size makes sense or 1) the 3 foot yard, the 5 yard rod or 8 yard furlong, 2) the 8 oz cup, 3) the 16 oz pound...there's not sense in even mentioning how shotgun gauges are determined
Whatever works. Some units are arbitrary in both systems, but in the old system are divided in a way that makes more sense for certain purposes, such as powers of 2 in liquid containers or multiples of 12 in order to have as many integral divisors as possible (useful for cooking, for example). Basing everything on multiples of 10 simplifies conversions but doesn't necessarily make any more sense in daily use.
how could the metric system be described as arbitrary, when the counting system we use is based on units of 10
That's arbitrary, too.
what would make more sense than a system of measurement which has water freezing at zero and boiling at 100 degrees
Why water and why does that make more sense in practical terms? The Fahrenheit system is similarly arbitrary (based in part on the internal human body temperature), but the units, in my opinion at least, make more practical sense in corresponding to the level of differences in temperature that most people can feel--Celsius units are too big, making the metric system slightly inferior regarding temperature (unless you're highly accustomed to it, anyway
). It's not difficult to remember that 32° F is where water freezes, and that 212° F is where water boils (at least at one standard atmosphere of pressure). Celsius is intended for everyday use anyway, and I use Kelvin more often.
And as for being consistent, what about time? Doesn't everybody still use minutes that comprise 60 seconds, and hours that comprise 60 minutes? Why not have units such as kiloseconds? Are people all over the world just too stubborn or recalcitrant to change to something so obviously "superior" that that their lives will improve all of a sudden? Let's not waste one more kilosecond and make the change today!
