Communication in Technical English Unit 2

MEASUREMENT
A. Understanding a printed text

This passage will introduce you to the principle of measurement in different fields of
engineering. Look at the way it is divided into sections and paragraphs.

Now look at these questions and read the passage through to find the answers.
Remember, you do not have to understand every word in order to do so.

1. Are engineering projects

possible without
knowledge of
measurement?
2. How many types of
temperature measurement
are given in the third
paragraph?
3. Do engineers need to
know about all the
different forms of
measurement?
4. How many basic units is
SI based on?
5. What instrument is used
when measuring a
flywheel housing?

MEASUREMENT

One definition. A simple

dictionary definition of the
verb “to measure” is to find
the size, quantity, volume,
degree, weight, etc. of
something by means of a
standard or unit. In all
branches of engineering,
measurement plays a vital
role since the design,
manufacture and use of any
product cannot be
considered without reference
to this concept1.

It is for this reason2 that the

majority of texts on
engineering contain tables, charts, lists or appendixes which provide the student with accepted
standards and units of measurement.

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Communication in Technical English Unit 2

Knowledge of measurement. We are all familiar with the symbols C and F for scales of
temperature, but there is also K (Kelvin), which is the fraction (1/273.16) of the thermodynamic
temperature of the triple part of water. Of course it may not always be necessary to understand
the precise definition itself provided one3 can understand the significance of the term or figure
in relation to the diagram, chart or calculation involved. Each branch of engineering, naturally,
tends to be more concerned with some particular forms of measurement than with others.

Conversion factors and SI equivalents. Look, for example, at Table 1 below, taken from a text
for chemical engineers and which shows conversion factors. Then compare it4 with Table 2
which gives US customary units and their SI equivalents and comes from a text on sanitation
engineering. At first glance, it may seem difficult, or even impossible, to find any connection
between the two. However, if we look more closely, we will see that much of the information
shown deals with the same things but from a different approach. Clearly, students in either of
the engineering branches5 for which the texts were written would have little difficulty in using
the figures and symbols relating to their own specialization.

SI Units. SI is the abbreviation for Système International d’Unités. SI is based on seven basic
units, each of which is defined with great accuracy and from which6 all other basic units are
derived. Under the system, each physical quantity has only one particular unit for its
measurement. Thus, a length is only measured in metres. If the number employed with a basic
unit is very small, or very large, then a prefix can be used as in km for kilometres.

Conversion tables are necessary because the USA and Britain still retain a measurement system
which is different from that7 used by the rest of the world.

Measuring devices. Since measurement is so important, it follows that there is a wide range of
devices and instruments which are designed to indicate very precisely length, pressure, time
and so on. The illustration below, from a manual on diesel mechanics, with its instructions for
aligning and measuring a flywheel housing, shows one such device and some of the 40
language and figures associated with its8 use.

Aligning and Measuring Flywheel Housing

When you install a new flywheel
housing, you must position it to
permit the axis of the crankshaft to
be concentric with the flywheel-
housing bore. To check the
position of the flywheel housing,
screw an indicator holder or place
a magnetic base onto the
crankshaft. Attach a dial gauge to
it so that the pointer rests squarely
on the surface of the bore (Fig. 16-
3), Zero the dial, then turn the
crankshaft one complete
revolution. Record readings at 90°
intervals. The reading at any point
must not exceed an average
concentricity (runout) tolerance of
0.005 in [0.12 mm]. Tap the
housing into alignment and tighten
the hex bolts.

Your next check should be the flywheel-housing face runout. To make this check, relocate the
dial gauge so that the pointer rests against the flywheel-housing flange. Force the crankshaft
forward to remove end play, then zero the dial. Turn the crankshaft one complete revolution,

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Communication in Technical English Unit 2

and record readings at 90° intervals. (NOTE: Make sure the crankshaft is placed forward when
taking the readings.) The average allowable maximum face runout is about 0.010 in [0.25 mm].

B. Check your understanding

1. Read the text again carefully, looking up anything you do not understand in a
dictionary or reference book. Then answer the following questions:

1. What is measurement?
2. How many different symbols for measurement of length are shown in the two tables?
3. How is the US measurement of force different from the SI unit?
4. Why do you think flow, concentration and velocity are in Table 2 but not in Table 1?
5. What is the principle on which SI is based?
6. What is the US customary unit for the SI equivalent 1.356J?
7. How many “ins” are there in 1 “m”, according to Table 1?
8. In the instructions on flywheel alignment, does 90° refer to temperature or distance?

2. Look at the text and say what the following words refer to:

• concept1 • branches 5
• reason2 • which6
• one3 • that 7
• it4 • its8

3. Look at Table (a) and Conversion Chart (b). Circle the correct thumb to
indicate if the expressions below are true or false. Are the facts shown below true
( = True) or false ( = False)?

Table (a) Chart (b)

 /  1J = 0.239006 cal  /  1 in = 25.40 cm
 /  1 m3 = 35.3147 (ft)2  /  907.2 kg = 1 ton
 /  103(W) = 1kW  /  1 lb/in2 = 6.895 kPa
 /  14.503(psia) = 2 bar  /  1 acre = 4047 m3

C. Increase your vocabulary

1. Find the symbols in Tables 1 and 2 which match the words:

• Joule • Watt • miles per • cubic metre

• inch • horse power second • milligrams per
• mile • kilogram • pounds per litre
square foot

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Communication in Technical English Unit 2

2. Now look at the first two paragraphs, and say:

• What words could you replace with “using”?

• What word has the same meaning as “very important”?
• What does “accepted” mean here?

3. Fill in the following table:

Noun Verb Noun Verb

Design Connection
Product Information
Significance Specialisation
Calculation Instructions

4. The word 'zero' in Aligning and measuring flywheel housing can be a verb or a noun with
the same spelling.

Find 10 more verbs in the section which can also be nouns like this:

Noun Verb Noun Verb

A screw To screw

D. Check your grammar

1.
Remember:

Care should be taken when using conversion charts

You should take care…

A prefix can be used to express very large numbers.

You can use a prefix…

Rewrite the following sentences using can / should / must / may with the passive form.

• Next, you should check the flywheel-housing face runout.

• You must position the flywheel housing very precisely.

• You can check the position by placing a magnetic base onto the crankshaft.

• It is possible to convert miles into kilometres by multiplying by 1.609.

• You can express the multiple 106 using the prefix mega and you must use M as the symbol for
this.

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Communication in Technical English Unit 2

• With SI numbers, you should not use a comma to separate multiples of a thousand. You may use a
space instead.

2.
Remember:

Like the UK, the USA measures larges areas in terms of square miles (m2).

M.p.g. expresses vehicle fuel consumption in the UK, whereas l/100km is

the equivalent in Continental Europe.

Complete the following sentences with like / unlike / whereas / although / however - so that they
make sense.

• __________ the SI unit for force is the newton (N), the US customary unit is the pound (lb).
• One acre seems to be very different from 4047m2 at first glance. __________, both figures denote
the same area.
• Daily temperature in Europe is expressed in Celsius (°C), __________ in the USA where
Fahrenheit (°F) is used.
• A diesel engine requires no ignition system __________ a gasoline engine cannot operate without
one.
• __________ the gasoline engine, the diesel engine is of the internal combustion design since they
both burn fuel within the cylinders

3. DEFINING

Remember:

used for measuring temperature.

A thermometer is an instrument which is used to measure temperature.

which measures temperature.

Make similar statements to the three above using the information in this table.

Term Class Function

Barometer measure strength of electric
Compass device current
Ammeter measure altitude of the sun
Slide Rule instrument calculate rapidly
Micrometer measure atmospheric pressure
Sextant tool measure very small distances
determine direction

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 Communication in Technical English Unit 2

E. Understanding a lecture

On your tape, you will hear part of a lecture. It has been divided into sections to enable you to
understand it more easily. After each section, answer the following questions.

Section 1
1. Is this the first lecture the speaker has given to the class? If not, how do you know?
2. What is the subject of this lecture?
3. Does the lecturer specify an exact number of ways to classify measuring devices?

Section 2
1. Complete the classification diagram below with the three categories mentioned by the lecturer.
2. What examples are given for category b?
3. Are other types of classification possible?

Measurement
categories

Section 3
1. Complete the top section of the classification diagram below.
2. Give an example of each of the units shown in the top section of the diagram.
Measurement
Units

Volumetric Specialised
things. e.g.
temperature

Calipers Graduated
cylinders

Spring Alcohol

Section 4
1. Complete as much of the rest of the diagram as possible with the examples of measuring devices
mentioned in this section of the lecture.
2. Where are measuring cups and measuring spoons usually found?

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Communication in Technical English Unit 2

Section 5
1. Complete the diagram now with the relevant information on specialised measuring devices.
2. How does the household thermometer function, according to the lecturer?

F. Further Reading 1

Capacitor values

Use the following information to name the colour bandings of the capacitors below.
(Note: 1nF = 1000pF).

For example:
220pF, 2.5%
Band 1 red = 2 Band 3 brown = one zero
Band 2 red = 2 Band 4 orange = 2.5% tolerance

1.- 100pF, 20%

2.- 180pF, 10%
3.- 22nF, 5%, 250V
4.- 47nF, 20%

Diode Coding

Identify these diodes with the help of the text below.

1.- BAX16
2.- BY126
3.- BZX55C2V4
4.- AA119
5.- BPX65

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Communication in Technical English Unit 2

G. Further Reading 2

Gas Central Heating

Using the diagram, the text and whatever you know about the topic try to explain the function
of these components:

Page 8 of 12
Communication in Technical English Unit 2

1. The pilot light

2. The heat exchanger fins
3. The flue
4. The thermostat
5. The pump.

Put these statements in the correct

sequence. The first and last have been
done for you.

a.- Water is circulated through a heat

exchanger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

b.- The loop returns to the boiler for re-

heating. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

c.- One loop passes through the inside of the

hot water storage cylinder in a coil of pipes.
............................

Page 9 of 12
Communication in Technical English Unit 2

d.- Water is heated by gas burners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

e.- The hot water is pumped through a diverter valve. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

f.- The other loop of the circuit passes to the radiators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

g.- Cold water from the radiators returns to the boiler. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 7

Use the statements above to label the stages show in the diagram of a heating system.

Page 10 of 12
Communication in Technical English Unit 2

Alice H. Parker
Alice Parker breaks barriers and brings the heat

Watch the video about the African American Alice Parker, and then answer these questions.

1.- Where was Alice Parker from?

2.- What kind of fuel did she suggest to use for heating homes?

3.- What university did she attend to?

4.- According to the video, what inspired her to file a patent?

5.- What did she specifically invent?

6.- Where can be found information about her design?

7.- At the end of the 19th century, what was central to black identity?

8.- What idea hasn’t changed very much?

9.- When did Alice Parke die?

10.- What was the number of her patent?

Page 11 of 12
Communication in Technical English Unit 2

Read Alice’s biography taken from the Wikipedia and say if these sentences are True or
False.

1.- Alice was born in Morristown, New Jersey, where she spent most of her life.

2.- She went to Howard University Academy, founded in 1866, just before the end of the American
Civil War.

3.- Hardly any information on her personal life is known as of today.

4.- Before the use of gas for heating, people relied on coal or wood.

5.- The Romans had already used gas furnaces for central heating.

6.- Parker’s system included a heat exchanger in order to distribute air through ducts to individually
controlled rooms.

7.- The disadvantages of her system led to the invention and use of features we use today.

8.- We can say that the thermostat and forced air furnaces invented by Alice Parker are in use
nowadays.

9.- Her patent was obtained prior to the Women’s Liberation Movement.

10.- The New Jersey Chamber of Commerce named an Innovation award after Alice Parker.

Page 12 of 12
Alice H. Parker
Alice H. Parker (1885 – 1920)[1] was an African-American inventor known for her patent for a gas
furnace.

Alice H. Parker
Contents Born 1885
Morristown, New
Early life
Jersey
Invention
Nationality American
Legacy
Occupation Inventor
References
Known for Heating Furnace

Early life
Alice H. Parker was born in 1885 in Morristown, New Jersey, where she grew up some of her life.[2][3]
Parker was a highly educated woman who graduated with honors in 1910 from Howard University
Academy, a historically African-American university that accepted both male and female students since its
founding in November 1866, shortly after the Civil War.[4] According to census data, Parker worked as a
cook in the kitchen in Morristown, NJ and lived with her husband, who was a butler. Despite her
revolutionary impact on today's modern heating system, there is almost no information recorded on her
personal life. Although the specific date of her death is unknown, it is thought she died in 1920 due to a fire
or heat stroke.

Invention
At the time, central gas heating has yet to be developed, so people relied on burning coal or wood as their
main source of heating. While furnaces and the concept of central heating have been around since the
Roman Empire, the science hardly advanced in the years that followed, and the heating methods utilized by
the end of the nineteenth century were still relatively primitive in nature.

Parker felt that the fireplace alone was not enough to keep her and her home warm during the cold Jersey
winter, and went on to design the first gas furnace that was powered by natural gas and the first heating
system to contain individually controlled air ducts that distributed heat evenly throughout the building. In
more technical terms, Parker's heating system used independently controlled burner units that drew in cold
air and conveyed the heat through a heat exchanger. This air was then fed into individual ducts to control
the amount of heat in different areas.[5][2] What made her invention particularly unique, was that it was a
form of "zone heating" where temperature can be moderated in different parts of a building. Parker
received a patent for her design in 1919.[6][7][8]

Although the invention had amassive positive impacts, it also came with a few downsides. Her design
posed a few health and safety risks as it made certain appliances like the oven more flammable and unsafe
to touch. The regulation of the heat flow also posed a few security risks. On the other hand, Parkers
invention also decreased the risk of house or building fires that heating units posed by eliminating the need
to leave a burning fireplace on throughout the night. With her idea for a furnace used with modifications to
eliminate safety concerns, it inspired and led the way to features such as thermostats, zone heating and
forced air furnaces, which are common features of modern central heating. Additionally, by using natural
gas, it heated homes much more efficiently than wood or coal counterparts (which were more time
consuming and expensive). Parkers invention was further improved in 1935 by scientists who created
forced convection wall heaters that use a coal furnace, electric fan, and ductwork throughout a home.
Nowadays, homes utilize thermostats and forced air furnaces which can be attributed to Parker's design and
invention of the central heating furnace.[8][9][3] Her filing of the patent precedes both the Civil Rights
Movement and the Women's Liberation Movement, which made her accomplishments especially
impressive, as it removed many barriers for black women of her generation.[10]

Legacy
In 2019, the National Society of Black Physicists honored Parker as an "African American inventor famous
for her patented system of central heating using natural gas." It called her invention a "revolutionary idea"
for the 1920s, "that conserved energy and paved the way for the central heating systems".[11] The New
Jersey Chamber of Commerce established the Alice H. Parker Women Leaders in Innovation Awards to
honor women who use their "talent, hard work and ‘outside-the-box’ thinking to create economic
opportunities and help make New Jersey a better place to live and work."[12][13]

References
1. "Breaking Walls". The Daily Telegraph. October 27, 2018. p. 2. ISSN 0307-1235 (https://ww
w.worldcat.org/issn/0307-1235). ProQuest 2125559167 (https://search.proquest.com/docvie
w/2125559167).
2. Gibbs, C. R. (1995). Black Inventors: From Africa to America (https://archive.org/details/black
inventorsfr00gibb/page/208/mode/1up). Three Dimensional Publications. p. 208.
OCLC 1028870546 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1028870546).
3. Turner, Doreen (November 22, 2019). "The Mother of Modern Heating: A Tribute to Alice H.
Parker" (https://robairecompany.com/the-mother-of-modern-heating-a-tribute-to-alice-h-parke
r/). Robaire Company, Inc. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20210219165101/https://ro
bairecompany.com/the-mother-of-modern-heating-a-tribute-to-alice-h-parker/) from the
original on February 19, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
4. "Industry" (https://repository.library.brown.edu/studio/item/bdr:512911/PDF/). The Crisis. 19
(4): 211. February 1920.
5. Sluby, Patricia Carter (2004). The Inventive Spirit of African Americans: Patented Ingenuity
(https://books.google.com/books?id=Wz-DTSXeLRYC&q=%22Alice+H.+Parker%22+furnac
e&pg=PA133). Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-275-96674-4.
6. US 1325905 (https://worldwide.espacenet.com/textdoc?DB=EPODOC&IDX=US1325905),
Parker, Alice H., "Heating-furnace", published 1919-12-23
7. Webster, Raymond B. (1999). African American Firsts in Science & Technology (https://archi
ve.org/details/africanamericanf0000webs/page/15/mode/1up). Detroit: Gale Group. p. 15.
ISBN 978-0-7876-3876-4. OCLC 41238505 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/41238505).
8. "Women's History Month: Alice Parker's Gas Furnace Patent" (https://www.heattreattoday.co
m/industries/energy-heat-treat/womens-history-month-alice-parkers-gas-furnace-patent/).
HeatTreatToday. March 16, 2018. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20211208043544/h
ttps://www.heattreattoday.com/industries/energy-heat-treat/womens-history-month-alice-park
ers-gas-furnace-patent/) from the original on December 8, 2021. Retrieved December 1,
2020.
 9. "Alice H. Parker" (https://www.njchamber.com/events/wia/89-features/women-in-innovation/p
rofiles/921-alice-h-parker). New Jersey Chamber of Commerce. Archived (https://web.archiv
e.org/web/20210202132049/https://njchamber.com/events/wia/89-features/women-in-innova
tion/profiles/921-alice-h-parker) from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved
December 1, 2020.
10. Weber, Erika (April 1, 2018). "ALICE H. PARKER (1895-?)" (https://www.blackpast.org/africa
n-american-history/parker-alice-h-1895/). BlackPast. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/2
0190305135218/https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/parker-alice-h-1895/)
from the original on March 5, 2019. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
11. "Alice H. Parker" (https://www.nsbp.org/nsbp-news/bhm-physics-profiles/2019-honorees/123
-alice-h-parker). The National Society of Black Physicists. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
12. "Three Women Who Embody the Best of Outside-the-Box Thinking Will Receive the N.J.
Chamber's 'Women Leaders in Innovation' Award" (https://www.insidernj.com/press-release/
three-women-embody-best-outside-box-thinking-will-receive-n-j-chambers-women-leaders-i
nnovation-award-2/). Insider New Jersey. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
13. "NJ Chamber to Honor 3 Women Leaders in Innovation" (https://njchamber.com/press-releas
es/953-nj-chamber-to-honor-3-women-leaders-in-innovation). New Jersey Chamber of
Commerce. Retrieved November 18, 2020.

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