Measuring Ms. Wickersham

How many systems of measurement are there? Metric (International System of Units) –Centimeters and Meters (Length) U.S. Customary (English System) –Inches and Feet (Length)

Which countries use the “English” system? The U.S., Liberia and Burma (Myanmar) are the only countries that do not use the metric system A bill brought before the Congress to make the Metric System mandatory ……they were defeated by one vote. Congress passed the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 "to coordinate and plan the increasing use of the metric system…. … but it was voluntary.

The Whole Inch The inch operates off equal spaces. Each line represents the ending and beginning of set of spaces. Notice the varying lengths of lines. –The longest is the inch line –The 2 nd longest is the ½” line –The 3 rd longest is the ¼” line 0 1

Parts of the Inch

The orange line represents the ½” mark. Written as a fraction: ½ –Notice the denominator in the fraction is 2 and there are 2 halves in an inch. –The space between the lines is important in measuring, not the number of lines! 01

Parts of the Inch The orange lines represent the ¼” marks. Written as a fraction: ¼ –Notice the denominator in the fraction is 4 and there are 4 in an inch. –The space between the lines is important in measuring, not the number of lines! 01

Parts of the Inch The orange lines represent the 1/8 ” marks. Written as a fraction: 1/8 –Notice the denominator in the fraction is 8 and there are 8 in an inch. –The space between the lines is important in measuring, not the number of lines! 10

Parts of the Inch The orange lines represent the 1/16” mark. Written as a fraction: 1/16 –Notice the denominator in the fraction is 16 and there are 16 in an inch. –The space between the lines is important in measuring, not the number of lines! 01

English System If you can count to 16, you can use this system! There are 16, 16ths in an inch. –Simply count the 16ths. –Write it as a fraction. 1.would be 9/16ths 2.would be 15/16ths 3.would be 1-5/16ths

The Metric System The metric system is based on a decimal system (i.e. powers of ten). The Metric System has common prefixes. –kilo could be used both for weight (kilogram) or length (kilometre) both indicating a thousand times the base unit.

Common Prefixes Millimeter = mm (There are 10 mm in a cm) Centimeter = cm(There are 10 cm in a dm) Decimeter = dm(There are 10 dm in a m) Meter = m You will be using centimeters and millimeters in this class! (Bill Nye – 1.36m)

Measurement Tools