1. ·Facilitates communications among scientists.
Measurement in Science:
What is the metric measurement system?
Why is it used in science?
The metric system is a standardized measurement system agreed upon by the international science community.
·Facilitates communications among scientists.
·Mathematics based on multiples of 10 easier.
·Prefixes used are the same regardless of base

2. What are base units?
What are prefixes?
Base units are the name of the unit used for certain types of measurements:
mass/weight length/distance volume time
grams meters liters second
pounds, ounces, tons inches, feet, miles cup, pint second
Prefixes make a unit larger or smaller than the base unit by some multiple of 10. The most commonly used prefixes are:
kilo- centi- milli-
means means means 1000
times bigger times smaller times smaller

3. ·A yard stick is a little shorter than 1 meter.
Common items can help visiualize how big or small a metric unit is:
Length or distance: Base Unit: METER
·A yard stick is a little shorter than 1 meter.
·A 12 inch ruler is about 30 centimeter.
·A dime is a little bit more than 1 millimeter thick.
·Rubber Avenue is about 2 1/2 kilometer long.
Abbreviations: meter = m
centimeter = cm
millimeter = mm
kilometer = km

4. Mass or weight: Base Unit: GRAM
Common items can help visiualize how big or small a metric unit is:
Mass or weight: Base Unit: GRAM
·A nickel weighs 5.0 grams. A penny weighs 21/2g.
·A five pound bag of flour is about 2 1/4 kilograms.
·A baby aspirin is about 50 milligrams.
Abbreviations: gram = g
centigram = cg
milligram = mg
kilogram = kg

5. Common items can help visiualize how big or small a metric unit is:
Volume: Base Unit: LITER
·A large bottle of soda pop is 2 liters.
·A teaspoon is 5 milliliters.
Hospitals, pharmacies and medicines sometimes use cc or cm3 which is equal to 1 milliliter.
Abbreviations: liter = L
centiliter = cL
milliliter = mL
kiloliter = kL

6. Converting Metric Measurements
Windows(R) operating system and Mac OS X operating system software
Submitted by Candace Beaton

7. Converting centimetres to millimetres
The sunflower's height is measured in centimetres (cm).
How tall is the sunflower in cm?
To convert a measurement from cm to millimetres (mm), you must multiply by 10. When you multiply by 10, you move the decimal point one place to the right. cm x 10 = mm
height of sunflower
What is the height of the sunflower in millimetres?

8. Converting centimetres to millimetres
The relationship between cm and mm is:
1 cm = 10 mm
Can you convert the following cm to mm?
3 cm = ______mm
4 cm = ______mm
23 cm = ______mm
56 cm = ______mm
100 cm = ______mm
5.3 cm = ______mm
43.7 cm = ______mm
0.09 cm = ______mm

9. Converting millimetres to centimetres
The pencil's height is measured in millimetres (mm).
How tall is the pencil in mm?
To convert a measurement from mm to centimetres (cm), you must divide by 10. When you divide by 10, you move the decimal point one place to the left. _ . mm 10 = cm
height of pencil
What is the height of the sunflower in centimetres?

10. Converting millimetres to centimetres
The relationship between mm and cm is
10 mm = 1 cm
Can you convert the following mm to cm?
14 mm = _____cm
2 mm = ______cm
34.5 mm = ______cm
87.42 mm = ______cm
0.20 mm = ______cm
0.5 mm = ______cm
200 mm = ______cm
6789 mm = ______cm

11. Converting centimetres to metres
The average height of an 12-year-old boy is 147 cm. We can express this measurement in metres by using the following relationship:
100 cm = 1 m
To convert a measurement from cm to metres (m), you must divide by 100. When you divide by 100, you move the decimal point two places to the left. _ . cm
100 = m
height of average boy
What is the height of an average 12-year-old boy in metres?

12. Converting centimetres to metres
Can you convert the following cm to m?
150 cm = ______m
54.3 cm = ______m
92.5 cm = ______m
1000 cm = ______m
1453 cm = ______m
0.30 cm = ______m
2,589 cm = ______m

13. Converting metres to centimetres
The average height of race horse is 1.6 m. We can express this measurement in centimetres by using the following relationship:
1 m = 100 cm
To convert a measurement from m to centimetres (cm), you must multiply by 100. When you multiply by 100, you move the decimal point two places to the right. m x
100 = cm
height of average race horse
What is the height of an race horse in centimetres?

14. Converting metres to centimetres
Can you convert the following m to cm?
2 m = ______cm
34 m = ______cm
0.8 m = ______cm
0.764 m = ______cm
124.3 m = ______cm
65.2 m = ______cm
230 m = ______cm

15. Practice your skills
Arrange the lengths in each set from smallest to greatest.
Set 1
0.4 cm
0.4 mm
2.1 cm
1.2 mm
Set 2
156 cm
1.5 m
2 m
723 cm

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