"It was not until about 1600 that the idea of writing fractions in the form of decimals was promoted in Western Europe. The Dutch mathematician Simon Stevin was the first to throw clear light upon the advantages of the decimal notation. In a pamphlet, De Thiende (The Dime), he advocated the use of decimal fractions. He urged that governments adopt the decimal system and also decimal coins, weights, and measures. This did not happen on a large scale, however, until the French Revolution."