UNIT (10)
MEASURE – IMPERIAL
AND METRIC
MEASURES
S AYA PA I N G 04.11.2024
(MON)
A REVIEW OF UNITS OF MEASUREMENT
• One of the most important things to understand about units of measurement is that there are
two main systems:
• The Imperial System: Also sometimes called "U. S. customary measurements" the Imperial
system contains units like quarts, inches, and miles. Its primary use is that it tends to make
dealing with fractions easier, for example, 1/3rd of a foot is 4 inches, whereas 1/3d of a meter
is 33.33333... cm
• The Metric System: The metric system is used by most countries and is the universal standard
for scientists worldwide. It includes units such as meters, liters, and grams. Using the metric
system allows for easy communication and understanding of experimental results across
different countries and cultures.
• A number of different qualities can be measured with both metric and Imperial systems:
• Time: We measure time with seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, years, and centuries.
These are the same units for both metric and Imperial systems.
• Distance: The metric system measures distance in meters. Variations include the millimeter,
the centimeter, the kilometer, and many others. The Imperial system measures distance in
inches, feet, yards, and miles.
• Mass: The metric system measures mass in grams. Variations include milligrams, kilograms,
and metric tons. The Imperial system measures mass in ounces, pounds, and tons.
• There are many other qualities that we can measure, including frequency, volume, and
temperature.
The metric system is easy to understand because it operates based on powers of ten.
For example:
• A kilometer is 1000 meters
• A meter is 100 centimeters
• A centimeter is 10 millimeters
With a cursory understanding of Latin, we can also predict the value of any measurement within
the metric system:
• "Deca" is a Latin prefix that means "ten"
• "Milli" is a Latin prefix that means "thousand"
• "Centi" is a Latin prefix that means "hundred"
WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT TO
CHOOSE APPROPRIATE UNITS OF
MEASUREMENT?
• Choosing the right unit of measurement is important. When it comes to the specific system of
measurement, we don't really have a choice -- since our country makes that decision on our
behalf!
• But we can choose the appropriate unit.
Here are a few examples:
• If we wanted to measure the distance between two cities, we would use miles or kilometers.
• If we wanted to measure someone's height, we would use feet or meters.
• If we wanted to measure someone's weight, we would use pounds or kilograms.
• If we wanted to measure the capacity of a soda can, we would use milliliters or ounces.
• If we wanted to measure the height of a beetle, we would use inches or millimeters.
• If we wanted to measure the time it takes to drive between two cities, we would use hours.
• If we wanted to measure the amount of time it takes to run 100 meters, we would use seconds.
Note that it does not make sense to use the wrong units in various situations:
• It doesn't make sense to use millimeters to measure the height of a mountain.
• It doesn't make sense to use seconds to measure the time it takes for a planet to orbit the sun.
• It does make sense to use miles to measure the size of a microchip.
