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Basic Quantities and SI Units. Physical Quantities

This document discusses basic physical quantities and SI units. It defines physical quantities as things that can be observed and measured, giving examples like length, speed, weight, and temperature. Physical quantities are divided into base quantities and derived quantities, with base quantities not being combinations of other quantities. The document then lists the seven base SI units for mass, length, time, temperature, amount of substance, electric current, and luminous intensity. It provides tables of common prefixes used with SI units and their corresponding powers of ten. Finally, it gives an example conversion problem between km/h and m/s, m/s and km/h, cm2 and m2, and g/cm3 and kg/m3.

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153 views

Basic Quantities and SI Units. Physical Quantities

This document discusses basic physical quantities and SI units. It defines physical quantities as things that can be observed and measured, giving examples like length, speed, weight, and temperature. Physical quantities are divided into base quantities and derived quantities, with base quantities not being combinations of other quantities. The document then lists the seven base SI units for mass, length, time, temperature, amount of substance, electric current, and luminous intensity. It provides tables of common prefixes used with SI units and their corresponding powers of ten. Finally, it gives an example conversion problem between km/h and m/s, m/s and km/h, cm2 and m2, and g/cm3 and kg/m3.

Uploaded by

nisasoberi
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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CLB10402

Basic Quantities and SI Units.

Physical Quantities

 A physical quantity is something which can be observed and measured.


 Examples: Length, area, speed, weight, temperature, electric current.
 All these quantities can be observed and their magnitudes or sizes can be
measured.
 There are two categories of physical quantities : base quantities and derived
quantities.
 Base quantity is the basis of a physical measurement and it is not a combination
of any other quantities.

SI Units.

Base quantities and base units


 The table below shows the base quantities chosen fro the international System of
Units (SI) and their corresponding base units.

Table 1. Seven base quantities in System International (SI) unit.

Base quantities Si Units Symbols


Mass kilogram kg
Length metre m
Time second s
Thermodynamic kelvin K
temperature
Amount of substance mole mol
Electric current ampere A
Luminous intensity candela cd

 A base quantity can be written in terms of prefixes to indicate power of ten factors
and to simplify pronunciation. Table 2 lists some of the prefixes that are
commonly used.

Table 2 : Lists of prefixes and its respective powers of ten.

Prefix Tera Giga Mega kilo centi mili micro nano pico
Symbol T G M k c m  n p
Value 1012 109 106 103 10-2 10-3 10-6 10-9 10-12
CLB10402

Unit Conversion

Example 1.1

Convert :
i. 110 km/h to m/s
ii. 340 m/s to km/h
iii. 15 cm2 to m2
iv. 1 g/cm3 to kg/m3

Solution

 km  1000m  1h   m
i. 110      30.6 
 h  1km  3600s   s

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