Measurement - Caldwell-West Caldwell Public Schools...The Metric System ! The system of measurement used around the world not only in science but in everyday life. (Called Systeme

Measurement Using the Metric System in

Science

Do Now:

Where do you ue the metric system in real life?

The English System n  The system of measurement the United

States uses. n  Uses inches, feet, yards, and miles to

measure length n  Uses ounces and pounds to measure

mass n  Uses ounces and gallons to measure

volume

The Metric System n  The system of measurement used

around the world not only in science but in everyday life. (Called Systeme Internationale…SI)

n  The metric system is based on multiples of ten, making it very easy to understand, once you learn the vocabulary.

n  A metric prefix indicates how many times a basic unit (meter, liter, or gram) should be multiplied or divided by ten.

English v. Metric Usage

Liberia

Liberia

Liberia

Myanmar

Some Real-World Examples: n  What does it mean when we say a lawyer

makes 150K a year? n  How do we express the storage capacity

of a computer? n  How do we describe the clarity of a

digital camera? n  How do we measure the daily vitamin

allowances that should be in our diets?

Metric Conversions-changing from one amount to another.

n  You can use the metric prefixes to change from one length, mass, or volume to another in the metric system

n  You can use the acronym: King Henry Died… by… drinking chocolate milk

to help you with these conversions. n  Each underlined letter represents a

prefix and “by” represents the basic unit you are dealing with (gram, meter, liter)

SI Prefixes

Prefix

Symbol

Meaning

Multiply Unit by

Giga

Mega

Kilo

Hecto

Deca

deci

centi

milli

micro

nano