Units of Measurement and Significant Figures

Flashcards highlighting key concepts related to units of measurement, significant figures, and the metric system.

Units of Measurement

Names and abbreviations used to quantify volume, length, mass, temperature, and time.

International System of Units (SI)

A worldwide standard of measurement that includes units for length, volume, mass, temperature, and time.

Cubic Meter (m³)

The SI unit of volume.

Kilogram (kg)

The SI unit of mass.

Meter (m)

The SI unit of length.

Kelvin (K)

The SI unit of temperature.

Scientific Notation

A way of expressing numbers as a coefficient multiplied by a power of ten.

Coefficient

The numerical part of a number in scientific notation.

Power of 10

An expression that denotes how many times to multiply a number by ten.

Significant Figures (SFs)

Digits in a number that contribute to its precision, including all nonzero digits, zeros between them, and trailing zeros in the decimal.

Exact Numbers

Numbers obtained by counting or defined quantities that have no uncertainty.

Prefix (in metric system)

A component added to a unit to indicate a multiple or fraction of that unit.

Milligram (mg)

A metric unit of mass equal to one thousandth of a gram.

Microgram (μg)

A metric unit of mass equal to one millionth of a gram.

Density

The mass of an object divided by its volume, often expressed in g/cm³ or g/mL.

Volume Displacement

A method used to measure the volume of an object by submerging it in water.

Conversion Factor

A ratio that expresses how many of one unit are equal to another unit.

Equality (in measurements)

A statement that two different units represent the same amount.

Measured Numbers

Numbers obtained through measurement, which include a degree of uncertainty.

Prefix for 1000

Kilo (k), used to denote a factor of 1000 in metric units.

Prefix for 0.001

Milli (m), used to denote a factor of 0.001 in metric units.

Prefix for 0.01

Centi (c), used to denote a factor of 0.01 in metric units.