Name _______________________________________ Date _______________________ Per _______
Metric System Unit System of Measurement
The birth of the metric system occurred in the climate of bold reform and scientific rationalization
that prevailed in France during the latter part of the 18th century. In April 1790, Charles Maurice de
Talleyrand, then Bishop of Autun, placed before the National Assembly of France a plan based on a unit
of length equal to the length of a pendulum that would make one full swing per second. The French
Academy of Sciences organized special committees to study the related issues. While many scientists
favored the concept of a unit of length derived from a pendulum, there were many recognized practical
difficulties. These included variations with temperature and the different values of gravitational force at
different places on the surface of the Earth. After scientific consideration of the alternatives, the
committee recommended a new unit of length equal to one ten-millionth of the length of the arc from the
equator to the North Pole, or a quadrant of the Earth's meridian circle. In May 1793 this unit was given the
name meter, derived from the Greek word metron, meaning "a measure." From the same word came the
name of the new system. The unit of mass, the kilogram, was defined as the mass of water contained by a
cube whose sides are one-tenth the length of a meter. The unit of volume, the liter, was defined in the
same way; thus the unit of length became the basis for the system. At that time the units of length, mass,
area, volume, and time satisfied the needs of commerce. The new Republic of France adopted the
recommendations of the French Academy in 1795.
The advantages of the Metric system are:
1) It was based on a decimal system (i.e.: powers of ten). Therefore, it simplifies calculations by
using a set of prefixes which we will discuss in a few minutes.
2) It is used by most other nations of the world, and therefore, it has commercial and trade
advantage. If an American manufacturer that has domestic and international customers is to
compete, they have to absorb the added cost of dealing with two systems of measurement.
Let's now take a few minutes and speak of the useful set of "prefixes" used in the metric system
sometimes referred to as the System Internationale (SI). One of the mathematical advantages of the metric
system is its combination of metric terminology with its decimal organization. There are several prefixes
that are associated with a decimal position and can be attached to the base metric unit in order to create a
new metric unit. The knowledge of the decimal meaning of the prefix establishes the relationship between
the newly created unit and the base unit.
For example: the prefix "kilo" means 103 or 1000 so if I take a mythical base unit like the "bounce"
and I attach the kilo prefix in front, I create a new unit called the "kilobounce".
In addition, the relationship between the two units is now well established. Since I know that
"kilo" means 1000 then one kilobounce unit is the same as (or equal to) 103 bounce units. The prefixes
that are most important are listed below along with their decimal and exponential equivalents:
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Prefix
atto
Symbo
l
a
femto
pico
nano
micro
milli
centi
deci
no
prefix
deka
hecto
kilo
mega
giga
tera
peta
exa
f
p
n
u
m
c
d
da
h
k
m
G
T
P
E
Decimal Equivalent
exponential
equivalent
0.000 000 000 000 000
001
0.000 000 000 000 001
0.000 000 000 001
0.000 000 001
0.000 001
0.001
0.01
0.1
1
10-18
10
100
1000
1,000,000
1,000,000,000
1,000,000,000,000
1,000,000,000,000,000
1,000,000,000,000,000,
000
101
102
103
106
109
1012
1015
1018
10-15
10-12
10-9
10-6
10-3
10-2
10-1
100
The Metric System can be used to measure (as well as a number of others):
1. Mass – grams
4. Time – seconds
2. Dimension – meters
5. Area – m2 or cm2
3
3. Volume – liters or cm
Questions
Short Answer:
1) Who proposed the first standardized system of measurement?
2) Name two reasons this idea was not accepted.
3) What was the first unit defined by the metric system?
4) How was this size first defined?
5) What year did France adopt the metric system of measurement?
6) What is the mass of a cube of water that is 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters?
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7) What is the volume of a cube of water that is 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters?
8) How many meters is it from the equator to the North Pole?
9) Why is it an advantage that the metric system is based on the decimal system?
10) Why is it an advantage that the metric system is used by most every country in the world?
Problems:
1) How many milliliters are in a liter?
6) How many decimeters are in a dekameter?
2) How many centimeters are in a meter?
7) How many teragrams are in a gigagram?
3) How many micrometers are in a millimeter?
8) How many cubic centimeters are in a liter?
4) How many kilometers are in a meter?
9) How many centimeters are in kilometer?
5) How many nanoseconds are in a second?
10) How many kilometers are in a centimeter?
Advanced Problems:
1) The distance from Earth to the Sun is 150,000,000,000 meters. How far is this in kilometers, and
what would be the simplest metric prefix we could use to describe this distance?
2) If a car is traveling 11 meters per second, how many kilometers per hour are they going? Show your
work!
3) If there were 6 billion people living on Earth, what would be the best metric prefix to describe this
number?
4) A plot of land that is 4 kilometers by 5 kilometers has how many square meters? Show your work!
5) If a kilogram is the mass of water that is 10cm by 10cm by 10cm, what is the mass of water that is
20cm by 20cm by 20cm?
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Metric System - Answers
Short Answer:
1) Who proposed the first standardized system of
measurement?
6) What is the mass of a cube of water that is 10
centimeters by 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters?
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand, then Bishop of
Autun
One kilogram
7) What is the volume of a cube of water that is 10
centimeters by 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters?
2) Name two reasons this idea was not accepted.
One Liter
1. variations with temperature
2. different values of gravitational force at
different places on Earth
8) How many meters is it from the equator to the North
Pole?
Ten Million
3) What was the first unit defined by the metric system?
Meter
9) Why is it an advantage that the metric system is based
on the decimal system?
4) How was this size first defined?
one ten-millionth of the length of the arc from
the equator to the North Pole
it simplifies calculations
5) What year did France adopt the metric system of
measurement?
10) Why is it an advantage that the metric system is used
by most every country in the world?
The new Republic of France adopted the
recommendations of the French Academy in 1795.
commercial and trade advantage
Problems:
1) How many milliliters are in a liter?
6) How many decimeters are in a dekameter?
1000
100
2) How many centimeters are in a meter?
7) How many teragrams are in a gigagram?
0.001 or 1x10-3
100
3) How many micrometers are in a millimeter?
8) How many cubic centimeters are in a liter?
1,000
1,000
4) How many kilometers are in a meter?
9) How many centimeters are in kilometer?
0.001 or 1x10-3
100,000
5) How many nanoseconds are in a second?
10) How many kilometers are in a centimeter?
1,000,000,000 or 1x109
0.00001 or 1x10-5
Advanced Problems:
1) The distance from Earth to the Sun is 150,000,000,000 meters. How far is this in kilometers, and what would be the
simplest metric prefix we could use to describe this distance?
150,000,000 simplest prefix would be 150 gigameters
2) If a car is traveling 11 meters per second, how many kilometers per hour are they going? Show your work!
11m 60 s 60 min . 1km



 39.6 km
hr
s
min .
hr
1000m
3) If there were 6 billion people living on Earth, what would be the best metric prefix to describe this number?
Giga – 6 gigapeople
4) A plot of land that is 4 kilometers by 5 kilometers has how many square meters? Show your work!
4km 1000m 5km 1000m



 20,000,000m 2
1
1km
1
1km
5) If a kilogram is the mass of water that is 10cm by 10cm by 10cm, what is the mass of water that is 20cm by 20cm by 20cm?
8kg
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