1.06 When in Rome: Can You Read the Signs

As you continue to explore the world of Science, one of the things you may have noticed is that scientists use special tools for making observations and they are ultra careful to report accurate measurements.

When data are collected carefully and measurements are accurate, scientists are able to clearly communicate the results of their investigations and projects to the world.

In this activity you will: learn the basic units of the SI System learn the basic tools of measurement used in Biology practice making measurements

Reporting Measurements:

When we make measurements they should always include a number (quantity) and a unit. For example if someone made the statement:

There are three.

What information is missing? Right. Three what? We know how many, but we do not know what there are three of. A more accurate way to express this is to add a unit.

• There are three elephants
• 3 millimeters (mm)
• 3 grams (g)
• 3 liters (l)

Do you see? When we add units, then we know what has been measured and how many have been counted. Now, click your way to an understanding of some basic metric units and the tools we use to measure them. You may want to use a Notes Page to record this information. (Remember this is a template page. You will want to delete the directions and examples before you begin.)

Exploring Measurement

In the table below are some common quantities, the unit we express the quantity in, and the instrument in which we measure quantity.

1. Click the name of the Base Quantity to see the definition. Make note of these definitions in your notebook.
2. Click the name of the instrument to see a picture of that tool. Make note of this too!
3. Make sure you know:
   • the terms
   • their definitions
   • are able to identify each tool and what they are used to measure

Text-only version