Introduction: US Units of Measurement

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Define units of length and convert from one to another.
  • Perform arithmetic calculations on units of length.
  • Solve application problems involving units of length.
  • Define units of weight and convert from one to another.
  • Perform arithmetic calculations on units of weight.
  • Solve application problems involving units of weight.
  • Describe the general relationship between the U.S. customary units and metric units of length, weight/mass, and volume.
  • Define the metric prefixes and use them to perform basic conversions among metric units.
  • Solve application problems involving metric units of length, mass, and volume.
  • State the freezing and boiling points of water on the Celsius and Fahrenheit temperature scales.
  • Convert from one temperature scale to the other, using conversion formulas.

Measurement is a number that describes the size or amount of something. You can measure many things like length, area, capacity, weight, temperature and time. In the United States, two main systems of measurement are used: the metric system and the U.S. customary measurement system.

In this section we will explore units for length, weight, and capacity, as well as solve problems that involve converting between different units of length, weight or capacity.