And I Would Walk 500 Miles

As you know, Americans measure distance by miles, while many other countries use kilometers to measure distance. They are both acceptable units of measurement, and they both mean “thousand” in their origins. For some reason, for Americans, using miles to measure distance is easier and more intuitive, and it’s always been this way.

The ratio of kilometers to miles can be confusing, though. This person is only half correct; while it’s true that 1 mile equals approximately 1.6 kilometers, he’s got the second part wrong. If one mile is over 1.5 kilometers, it means that one mile is longer than one kilometer. In the time it would take you to walk one mile, you could walk 1.6 kilometers.