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> 0° C: It's cold outside but not really that cold.

> These things are the case for humans

Who says so?

0 °C is very cold by many people's standards. About half the human population lives within the tropics. In fact I'd like to see Americans walk around in the UK wearing just a T-shirt and bermudas when it's barely above freezing, and insist 'it's not really that cold, it's only 32 °F'.



Maybe this is the perspective of someone who has spent a lot of time in the northern US, but it's cold but really not that cold. I might even run outside briefly in bare feet in the snow. But, yes, get to 0 degrees F and you're in bitter cold territory although, of course it gets colder in the northern Midwest/mountains/etc. And my contractor has been in shorts and a T in 40s-ish weather this week.

The point is that F degrees seems a pretty human scale that doesn't usually need a lot of decimals or minus signs for routine purposes. That it doesn't correspond to a couple of water transitions at standard pressure/temperature is sort of irrelevant. Of course, I and many other people are perfectly happy with using Celsius/Kelvin degrees for various purposes.


The minus sign is quite practical though.

When winter is coming, if it's 3 deg C outside, I typically don't need to worry about ice. If it's -3 deg C outside, I need to worry about ice.

When winter is waning, if it's been icy and it's -3 deg C outside, I typically don't need to worry about water on top of the ice. If it's 3 deg C outside, I typically do need to worry about water on top of the ice making it super slippery.


Again, it's not about where you live. 0°F is approximately the temperature at which the risk of frostbite becomes significant. 100°F is approximately the temperature at which the risk of heat-related illnesses becomes significant. Temperatures in between are far less hazardous to humans, even if the numbers near the edges are starting to get uncomfortable.




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