Cards | 10 |
Focus | Metric System |
Topics | Base Units, Kelvin Scale, Number System, Prefixes |
Measurement | Base Unit | Example |
---|---|---|
length / distance | meter (m) | km |
mass | gram (g) | kg |
volume | liter (L) | mL |
volume (medical) | cubic centimeter (cc) | cc |
time | second (s), minute (min), hour (h) | ms, min, h |
temperature | centigrade (°C) | °C |
In contrast to the Celsius scale (measured in degrees centigrade) that fixes 0° at the freezing point of water and the Fahrenheit scale that uses 32°, the Kelvin scale fixes 0° at absolute zero (-273°C) which is the lowest temperature possible in the universe.
The metric system is a number system that designates one base unit for each type of measurement. For example, the base unit for length is the meter and the base unit for mass is the gram.
A prefix is added to the base units of the metric system to indicate variations in size. Each prefix specifies a value relative to the base unit in a multiple of 10. Common prefixes are:
Prefix | Symbol | Relative Value | Example |
---|---|---|---|
mega | M | 106 (1,000,000) | Mm |
kilo | k | 103 (1,000) | km |
base unit | N/A | 1 | m |
centi | c | 10-2 (1/100) | cm |
milli | m | 10-3 (1/1,000) | mm |