Question

ITEM 11

Note: Your teacher will grade your responses to questions 11–15 to ensure you receive proper credit.
Explica el sistema métrico, según lo que tú sabes. ¿Cuáles son las diferentes unidades?

Explain the metric system, based on what you know. What are the different units? (ENGLISH)

Understanding The Metric System - YouTube

(5 points)

Answer 1

The metric system is a decimal (base‑10) system of measurement used internationally. Its modern form is the International System of Units (SI). It is designed so that units scale by powers of ten, making conversions easy by moving the decimal point.

Main SI base units (what they measure)
- metre (m) — length
- kilogram (kg) — mass (the SI base unit; note it already includes the prefix “kilo”)
- second (s) — time
- ampere (A) — electric current
- kelvin (K) — thermodynamic temperature
- mole (mol) — amount of substance
- candela (cd) — luminous intensity

Common derived units (formed from base units)
- newton (N) — force (kg·m/s²)
- joule (J) — energy/work (N·m)
- watt (W) — power (J/s)
- pascal (Pa) — pressure (N/m²)
- coulomb (C), volt (V), ohm (Ω) — electrical units

Common non‑SI but widely used unit
- litre (L) — volume (1 L = 1 dm³ = 0.001 m³)

Metric prefixes (scale by powers of ten)
- kilo (k) = 10^3 = 1,000
- hecto (h) = 10^2 = 100
- deci (d) = 10^-1 = 0.1
- centi (c) = 10^-2 = 0.01
- milli (m) = 10^-3 = 0.001
- micro (µ) = 10^-6
- nano (n) = 10^-9
- mega (M) = 10^6, giga (G) = 10^9, tera (T) = 10^12, etc.

Examples of conversions
- 1 km = 1,000 m
- 1 cm = 0.01 m
- 1 mg = 0.001 g
- 1 L = 0.001 m³
- Celsius and Kelvin: K = °C + 273.15

Summary: The metric/SI system uses a small set of base units, derives other units from them, and applies standard prefixes that change values by powers of ten, making calculation and conversion straightforward.