metric system
A decimal system of measurement whose units are based on certain physical standards and are scaled on multiples of 10
units of metric system
1. meter (m) for length
2. degrees Celsius (C) for temperature
3. gram (g) for mass
4. liter (L) for volume
Liter
not an SI unit. which is why the abbreviation is capitalized.
SI unite for volume
cubic meter (m^3)
other non metric units used in US
minute, hour, and nautical mile
symbols over 1 million are
capitalized; all others are lowercase
multiples, prefix name, prefix symbol
1 000 000 000 = 10^9, giga-, G
1 000 000 = 10^6, mega- , M
1 000 = 10^3, kilo-, k
100 = 10^2, hecto-, h
10 = 10^1, deka-, da
submultiples, prefix name, prefix symbol
0.1 = 10^-1, deci-, d
0.01 = 10^-2, centi-, c
0.001 = 10^-3, milli-, m
0.000 001 = 10^-6, micro-, N/A on computer
0.000 000 001 = 10^-9, nano-, n
examples of metric conversions
1 kg = 1000g
1 g = 1000 mg
1 mg = 1000 micrograms
1 L = 1000 mL
Temperature conversion formulas
C = (F-32) * 5/9
F = (C*9/5)+ 32
written names of all metric units start with
lowercase letters unless the begin a sentence. the one exception is degrees Celsius.
common conversion factors between metric and customary system
5 mL = 1 tsp
15 mL = 1 T (tablespoon)
30 mL = 1 fl oz
950 mL = 1 qt
3.8 L = 1 gal
2.54 cm = 1 inch
65 mg = 1 gr
0.45 kg = 1 lb
1 kg = 2.2 lb
plurals
full written names are only made plural when the numerical value that precedes them is more than 1. one exception is 0 degrees Celsius
spacing
leave a space between the number and the abbreviation. use spaces in place of commas if the metric value contains 5 or more digits
decimal point
always write a 0 before a decimal point when the number is less than 1