HANDOUT 2.

2
HISTORY OF MEASUREMENT & METRIC SYSTEM

History of Measurement

Man has always developed some methods for weighing and measuring things regardless of what period of time
we examine. History tells us that early man used a measuring system for making weapons, building places to
live in, and even in making clothing. Below are some of the notable measuring systems:

• The cubit is one of the first recorded unit of measurement. This is also called the forearm length. A cubit
was the distance from the tip of the middle finger of the outstretched hand to the point of the elbow
(approximately 19 inches). Noah supposedly built his ark 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits
high.
• In ancient times, an Egyptian carpenter could never misplace his ruler. It was attached to his body. For
example, he used his arm as the unit of length. A common brick is supposed to be a span long and one-
half span wide. A span is the distance from the tip of the little finger to the tip of the thumb of an
outstretched hand.
• A palm is the distance across the base of the four fingers that form the palm. It is considered to be 1/6 of
a cubit.
• A digit is the thickness or width of the middle of the middle finger, approximately three quarters of an
inch.
• The Romans used the idea of the digit in inventing the inch. According to the Romans, an inch was the
thickness or width of a thumb. There are no reliable facts on how the foot was invented.
• According to most stories, King Henry I of England decreed that a yard was the distance from the tip of
his nose to the end of the thumb on his outstretched hand. This was the reason why many standards of
measurement were determined.
• For example, Queen Elizabeth I changed the measure of the mile from 5,000 feet to 5,280 feet. Her
reason for doing this was because furlong equaled to 220 yards (660 feet), and if 1 mile equaled 5,280
feet, then a mile would equal 8 furlongs. Thus, a partial list of English measure about 1500 A.D. was the
following:
12 inches = 1 foot
3 feet = 1 yard
5 feet = 1 pace
125 paces = 1 furlong
8 furlongs = 1 mile
12 furlongs = 1 league

• England became a world power, and by means of trade and colonization, the English system became
established in many parts of the world. However, the clamor for greater uniformity and coordinated
measurement system was recognized over 300 years ago.
• In 1670, Bariel Mouton, vicar of St. Paul’s Church in Lyons, France, proposed that a standard unit of
length be one minute of arc of a great circle of the earth. (A great circle is any circumference of the
earth; the meridians that pass through the poles of the earth are examples of great circles.)
• Jean Picard, a French astronomer, proposed a unit of length that was the length of a pendulum that took
1 second swing back and forth. But since a pendulum swing faster at the north and south poles than it
does at the equator, nothing ever happened of Picard’s proposal.
• For over 100 years, after the proposal made by Mouton, not much was done toward developing a
standard unit of measurement. In 1790, the French Academy of Sciences devised a new system of
measurement. The new basic unit of length was a portion of a meridian of the earth similar to the unit
proposed by Mouton. The new unit was called a meter, which was taken from the Greek word metron,
“to measure.”
• A meter is about 39.37 inches long – a little longer than a yard. By always keeping this in mind, we will
be able to visualize how long a meter is.
• The metric unit used for determining mass (weight) is called a gram. The liter is the metric unit used
for determining volume.
Let us familiarize ourselves with the set of prefixes used throughout the system. Below are the most common
prefixes and their meanings.
Prefix Symbol Meaning
kilo k 1000
hecto h 100
deka da 10
deci d 1
or 0.1
10
centi c 1
or 0.01
100
milli m 1
or 0.001
1000

EXERCISES:
A. Complete each of the following.
1. 1 hectometer = _____ meters 11. 1 gram = _____ milligrams
2. 1 centimeter = _____ meters 12. 1 liter = _____ milliliters
3. 1 millimeter = _____ meters 13. 1 milligram = _____ gram
4. 1 decimeter = _____ meters 14. 1 decigram = _____ gram
5. 1 dekameter = _____ meters 15. 1 dekagram = _____ grams
6. 1 kilometer = _____ meters 16. 1 kiloliter = _____ dekaliters
7. 1 meter = _____ centimeters 17. 1 deciliter = _____ liters
8. 1 liter = _____ deciliters 18. 1 kilogram = _____ hectograms
9. 1 meter = _____ decimeters 19. 1 kilometer = _____ hectometers
10. 1 gram = _____ centigrams 20. 1 hectometer = _____ dekameters

B. Determine whether each statement is true or false.

1. There are 1000 liters in a milliliters.
2. A kilometer is one thousandth of a meter.
3. A centimeter is one hundredth of a meter.
4. A liter is smaller than a milliliter.
5. A liter is larger than a kiloliter.

Measurement

Measurement is the determination of the size of a thing or a comparison between some aspect of a thing and a
standard unit of measure.
A unit of measure that is agreed upon by many people is called a standard unit of measure. There are two
existing standard systems of measure: the English system and the Metric System, also known as the
International System or SI.

The purpose of this lesson is to identify the appropriate metric unit to use, to measure a given object and to
understand the standard units of measurement.

The table below shows the basic units used in the metric system and some units used in the English system.

Metric System English System

Linear Measure/Length Meter Mile, Yard, Foot, Inch
Capacity/Volume Liter Gallon, Pint, Cup
Mass/Weight Kilogram Ton, Pound, Ounce
Temperature Degree Celsius (℃) Degree Fahrenheit (℉)

EXAMPLES:
8 yards is expressed in standard unit of measurement.
3 spans is not expressed in a standard unit of measurement.
5 kilometers is expressed in standard unit of measurement.
10,000 steps is not expressed in standard unit of measurement.
A pinch is not expressed in standard unit of measurement.

EXERCISES:
A. Determine whether the following are expressed in standard unit of measurement. Write S if expressed in
standard unit of measurement and NS if not expressed in standard unit of measurement.
1. 5 decimeter 6. a meter of cloth 11. cup of coffee
2. 2 steps 7. one hectometer 12. a cubit
3. 8 cm 8. a bunch of flowers 13. 25 dekameters
4. A kilometer 9. 2 millimeters 14. 3 paces
5. A handful of beans 10. a truck load 15. 6 arm length

B. Choose the most sensible measure for each of the following. Encircle your answer.
1. distance from Manila to Hawaii 500 cm 500 m 500 km
2. thickness of a five peso coin 1 mm 1 cm 1m 1 km
3. height of your father 183 mm 183 cm 183 m 183 km
4. length of your fingernail 10 mm 10 cm 10 m 10 km
5. distance from the Earth to the Moon 340 000 mm 340 000 m 340 000 cm 340 000 km
6. width of a paper clip 1 mm 1 cm 1m 1 km
7. diameter of a large pizza 50 mm 50 cm 50 m 50 km
8. length of a shirt 50 mm 50 cm 50 m 50 km
9. your waistline 26 mm 26 cm 26 m 26 km
10. depth of a well 20 mm 20 cm 20 m 20 km

MEASURE OF LENGTH

Meter is the basic unit of length in the metric system. A meter is slightly longer than a yard. (1 meter
≈ 39.37 inches. The symbol ≈ means approximately equal.) The table shows the relationships among
the metric units of length.

Unit Symbol Fraction or Multiple of 1 Meter

1 millimeter 1 mm 0.001 m
1 centimeter 1 cm 0.01 m
1 decimeter 1 dm 0.1 m
1 meter 1m 1m
1 dekameter 1 dam 10 m
1 hectometer 1 hm 100 m
1 kilometer 1 km 1 000 m

Each metric unit is ten times greater than the smaller unit. To change from a smaller unit to a larger
unit, divide by the appropriate multiple of ten. On the other hand, to change from a larger unit to a
smaller unit, multiply the appropriate multiple. Another way to convert from one unit of measure to
another, is by using the metric converter illustrated below.

EXAMPLES:

1.5 m = 1.5 x 100 cm = 150 cm since there are 100 cm in 1m.

1.5 m = 150 cm since from meter to centimeter there are two spaces then move the decimal point from
left to the right.
3.2 km = 3200 m, move the decimal point three decimal places from left to the right.

225 mm = 0.225 m, move the decimal point three decimal places from right to the left.
EXERCISES:
A. Express each of the following in the indicated measurement.
1. 36732 dm = _______ km
2. 1387 dm = _______ cm
3. 3515 m = _______ km
1
4. 3 2 km = _______ dm
5. 3400 mm = _______ m
6. 570 cm = _______ dm = _______ m
7. 3.294 km = _______ dam = _______ hm
8. 900 mm = _______ cm = _______ dm
9. 1986 dm = _______ cm = _______ mm
10. 1.650 km = _______ dam = _______ m

B. Arrange the following in order from the longest to shortest.

1. 5 km, 1000 cm, 200 m, 5000 cm
2. 5000 mm, 20 m, 5 km, 2000 cm
3. 2.003 km, 63000 m, 1350 cm, 815000 mm
4. 0.005 km, 25 m, 25 dkm, 1515 mm
5. 1000 mm, 200 m, 39 m, 1 kilometer

C. Solve the following problems.

1. A bus traveled a distance of 34.8 km. How many meters did the bus travel?
2. Jella lives 1.025 kilometers from school. How far is her house from the school in meters?
3. Alice walked 200 meters to her classmate’s house and together they walked 600 meters to school.
How many kilometers did Alice alone cover?

MEASURE OF AREA

The measure of a region is called its area. The region could be polygonal or circular. In measuring
area, we use the units of square measure. The unit of measure for smaller areas is the square
centimeter or some other smaller units. For larger areas, you may use the square meter or some other
larger units.

Table of Square Measures (Metric)

1 square millimeter (𝑚𝑚2 ) = 0.000001 sq. m.

1 square centimeter (𝑐𝑚2 ) = 0.0001 sq. m.
1 square decimeter (𝑑𝑚2 ) = 0.01 sq. m.
1 square meter (𝑚2 ) = 1 sq. m.
1 square decameter (𝑑𝑎𝑚2 ) = 100 sq. m
1 square hectometer (ℎ𝑚2 ) or hectare (ha) = 10000 sq. m.
1 square kilometer (𝑘𝑚2 ) = 1000000 sq. m
100 hectares (ha) = 1 sq. km (𝑘𝑚2 )

EXAMPLES:

1. To convert 1.2 𝑚2 to 𝑐𝑚2 , count two spaces to the right (m to cm) and move the decimal point
2 × 2 = 4 places to the right, such that 1.2 𝑚2 = 12000 𝑐𝑚2

2. To convert 450 000 000 𝑐𝑚2 to 𝑘𝑚2 , count 5 spaces to the left (cm to km) and move the decimal
point 2 × 5 = 10 places to the left such that 450 000 000 𝑐𝑚2 = 0.045 𝑘𝑚2
EXERCISES:

A. What unit of area will you use for the area of:
1. The cover of a box
2. A sheet of manila paper
3. A papaya plantation
4. The floor of a bathroom
5. Baguio

B. Express the following in the measure indicated.

1. 3 ha = ______ 𝑚2 6. 3.2 𝑚2 = _______ 𝑐𝑚2
2. 2456 𝑚2 = ______ ha 7. 200 𝑑𝑚2 = _______ 𝑚2
3. 5000 𝑚2 = ______ 𝑘𝑚2 8. 2.45 𝑚2 = _______ 𝑐𝑚2
4. 2 𝑘𝑚2 = _______ 𝑚2 9. 1.2 𝑘𝑚2 = _______ 𝑚2
5. 7 𝑚2 = _______ 𝑑𝑚2 10. 73500 𝑚2 = _______ ha

C. Solve the following problems.

1. A bag of fertilizer can cover 450 𝑚2 of rice field. Will a bag be enough to cover a rectangular
field 25 m long and 18 m wide?
2. If the area of the Philippines is 300 000 𝑘𝑚2 , how many hectares is this?

MEASURE OF VOLUME/CAPACITY

The metric system uses the liter (L) as the basic unit of volume. The amount of space occupied by or
enclosed in a space figure is called volume. By capacity, we simply mean the total volume of the
container.

The most commonly used units of volume in the metric system are shown in the table below.

Unit Symbol Fraction of multiple of 1 liter

1 mL (𝑐𝑚3 ) mL 0.001 L
1 L (𝑑𝑚3 ) L 1L
1kL (𝑚3 ) kL 1000 L
Note: 1 L = 𝑑𝑚3 = 1000 𝑐𝑚3

EXAMPLES:

1. To convert 5 750 000 𝑐𝑚3 to 𝑚3 , count 2 spaces to the left (cm to m) and move the decimal point
2 × 3 = 6 places to the left, such that 5 750 000 𝑐𝑚3 = 5.75 𝑚3

2. To convert 0.000735 𝑘𝑚3 to 𝑚3 , count 3 spaces to the right (km to m) and move the decimal
point 3 × 3 = 9 places to the right, such that 0.000735 𝑘𝑚3 = 735000 𝑚3

EXERCISES:
A. Write the most realistic unit of measurement of volume/capacity in each blank.
1. A can of juice 5. Bath tub
2. A drop of vitamin C 6. Tea kettle
3. Spoon 7. Bottle of shampoo
4. Carton of cream 8. A glass of milk

B. Change the indicated unit. How many can you do orally?

1. 1.3 𝑐𝑚3 = ______ 𝑚𝑚3 3. 0.07 𝑚3 = ______ 𝑑𝑚3
2. 0.3 𝑑𝑚 = ______ 𝑐𝑚
3 3 4. 5.2 dL = _______ cL
 1
5. 6 L = ________ dL 11. 675 cL = ______ dL
2
1 12. 6550 cL = ______ L
6. 3 𝑚3 = _______ 𝑑𝑚3
2 13. 25500 L = ______ 𝑚3
7. 5.05 𝑚3 = ______ L 14. 8825 𝑐𝑚3 = ______ 𝑚3
8. 5250 𝑚𝑚3 = ______ 𝑚3 15. 0.003 𝑚3 = ______ 𝑐𝑚3
9. 650 𝑐𝑚3 = ______ 𝑑𝑚3
10. 250 𝑑𝑚3 = ______ 𝑚3

C. Solve the following problems.

1. The inside of a rectangular bin is 1.2 m long, 0.5 meter wide, 0.6 meter high. How many
liters of rice can it hold?
2. A cylindrical has a base radius of 3 m and a height of 5.5 m. If a cavan of palay measures
about 70 𝑑𝑚3 , how many cavans of palay (to the nearest cavan) can be stored in it?
3. An iron bar 5 meters long and 6 cm in diameter is to be melted and made into balls of
radius 3 cm. How many balls can be made?

MEASURE OF MASS

The basic unit of mass in metric system is the kilogram (kg). The interrelatedness of kilogram, liter
and meter can be seen in the table. The mass of an object is the amount of matter it contains.

Unit Symbol Fraction or Multiple of 1

kilogram
1 gram (𝑐𝑚3 ) g 0.001 kg
1 kilogram (𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟) kg 1 kg
1 tonne (𝑚3 ) t 1000 kg

EXAMPLES:

a. 3 L = _______ mL
Since 1 L = 1000 mL, multiply 3 by 1000 mL. Hence, 3 L = 3000 mL.

b. 5500 mL = ________ L
Since 1 L = 1000 mL, divide 5500 mL by 1000 mL. Hence, 5500 mL = 5.5 L.

c. 0.0025 kg = _________ g
Since 1 kg = 1000 g, multiply 0.0025 by 1000 g. Hence, 0.0025 kg = 2.5 g

d. 7500 kg = _________ t
Since 1 t = 1000 kg, divide 7500 kg by 1000. Hence, 7500 kg = 7.5 t

EXERCISES:
A. Encircle the most reasonable measure for each of the following.

1. A book 750 mg 750 g 750 kg

2. An adult’s pair of shoes 1 mg 1g 1 kg
3. Mass of salt 500 mg 500 g 500 kg
4. A pencil 3 mg 3g 3 kg
5. A paper clip 510 mg 510 g 510 kg

B. Find the equivalent value of the following as indicated.

1. 5 g = ________ mg 3. 550 cg = ________ dg
2. 3.2 kg = ________ g 4. ________ kg = 3500 mg
 5. ________ g = 98 mg 11. 0.00035 g = _______ mg
6. 8500 g = _______ kg 12. 0.00265 t = _______ kg
7. 873515 kg = _______ t 13. 65 542 g = _______ kg
8. 155 dg = ________ g 14. 4 kg = _______ g
9. _______ kg = 96785 mg 15. 85 464 mg = ______ g
10. 7.66 kg = _______ g

C. Fill in the missing data. Show your solution.

1. _______ mL = 750 𝑐𝑚3 = _______ kg
2. 105 L = _________ 𝑑𝑚3 = _______ kg
3. 2009 L = ________ mL
4. _______ L = 1 𝑑𝑚3 = _______ kg
5. 3000 𝑐𝑚3 = _______ mL

MEASURE OF TEMPERATURE

The degree Celsius is used to measure temperature. Originally called centigrade, two reference
temperatures are used:
1. The freezing point of water (0℃) and
2. The boiling point of water (100℃)

To convert degree Celsius (℃) into degree Fahrenheit (℉) use the formula:
9
℉ = 5 (℃) + 32 or ℉ = 1.8(℃) + 32

To convert degree Fahrenheit (℉) into degree Celsius (℃) use the formula:
5 ℉−32
℃ = 9 (℉ − 32) or ℃= 1.8

EXAMPLES:
1. Convert 30℃ to degree Fahrenheit.
℉ = 1.8(℃) + 32
℉ = 1.8(30) + 32
℉ = 54 + 32
℉ = 86

2. Convert 45℉ to degree Celsius.

℉ − 32
℃=
1.8
45 − 32
℃=
1.8
13
℃=
1.8
℃ = 7.2

EXERCISES:
A. Convert the following from degree Celsius to degree Fahrenheit.
1. 18.25 ℃
2. 15.75 ℃
3. 80.5 ℃
4. 42 ℃
5. 92 ℃
 B. Convert the following from degree Fahrenheit to degree Celsius.
1
1. 70 ℉
2
2. 80.5 ℉
3. 84.25 ℉
4. 98.6 ℉
5. 78.5 ℉

C. Solve the following problems.

1. At 5:00 am, the temperature was 25 ℃. By 9:00 am, it had risen by 8°. A sudden shower at
12:00 noon made it drop by 5 ℃. What was the temperature at 12:00 noon?
2. Suppose a certain amount of water cool down at the rate of 5° every ten minutes. If the
water is boiling at 10:00 am, when it was taken from the stove, about what time would it be
when the temperature was 65℃?

MEASURE OF TIME

A primitive man measured time by means of what he “saw” as the position of the sun during the day,
by the change in day to night and night to day, and by the shape of the moon. Later he made
instruments, such as water clocks, hour glasses, sundials and finally, watches. In recent years, man
has been able to measure time even to the microsecond through precise instruments.

Table of Time Measure

60 seconds (s) = 1 minute (min)

60 minutes = 1 hour (hr)
24 hours = 1 day
7 days = 1 week (wk)
1 fortnight = 2 weeks
30 (31, 28, 29) days = 1 month (mo)
3 (4) weeks = 1 month
1 quarter = 3 months or 13 weeks
12 months (365 days) =1 common year (yr)
366 days = 1 leap year
1 decade = 10 years
1 score = 20 years
100 years = 1 century
1000 years = 1 millennium

EXAMPLES:

a. 2.5 hours = _______ min

2.5 hrs = 2.5hrs × 60 min
2.5 hrs =150 minutes

b. ______ days = 144 hours

1 𝑑𝑎𝑦
144 hours = 144 hrs ×
24 ℎ𝑟𝑠
144 hrs = 6 days
EXERCISES:
A. Complete the following.
1. 7 hr = _______ days 6. 125 years = _______ centuries
1
2. 1 hr = _______ month 7. 8 years = ______ scores
2
1 8. 3 decades = ______ yr
3. 1 mo = _______ fortnight
2 9. 36 000 years = ______ millennia
4. 120 days = _______ hours 10. 120 centuries = ______ scores
5. 5 hours = _______ minutes

B. Give the missing number or units.

2 1
1. 1 hours = ________ sec 7. 70 years = 3 _______
3 2
2. ______ minutes = 216000 sec 8. 14000 centuries = _______
3. ______ leap yrs = 1560 days millennium
4. 45 hours = _______ days 9. 60 minutes = ________ sec
5. 5 _____ = 500 years 10. 14 hours = ________ min
6. 120 _______ = 10 years

C. Solve the following problems.

1. Joey worked on his mathematics assignment from 6:38 pm to 8:15 pm. How many minutes
did he spend on his assignment?
2. If July 4, 1998 falls on a Saturday, on what day will it fall in 2005?
3. How many minutes are there in one day?
4. A man lived to his 83rd birthday. How many days did he spent in this world?
5. How many scores make a millennium?