anal conversion

The act of converting rounded-off figures in one system of measurement to another to far too many digits.

Astronomer to local reporter: With only eye witness accounts, you can't be very accurate, but I'd say the meteorite was one hundred metric tons and exploded a five thousand meters altitude.

Newspaper article: From eyewitness accounts, local astronomer Dr. Hilbert pinned down the rock as being 220,400 lb. and exploding at 16,404 ft altitude.

Astronomer, reading the article: That's anal conversion! I sound like a charlatan!

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