UNITS & DIMENSIONS

 Physical Quantities & Units

 Dimensional Analysis
 Unit Conversion
Categories of Physical
Quantities
 Basic Physical Quantities

 Derived Physical Quantities

 Systems of Units

Length Mass Time

Temp.

SI: m kg s K

cgs: cm g s C
o

fps: ft lbm s F
o
 Standard We Will Use

 We will follow the International System of Units –

also known as the SI standard
 It includes:
Length/Distance measured in meters (m)
Mass measured in kilograms (kg)
Time measured in seconds (s)
Charge measured in Coulombs (C)
Temperature measured in degrees Kelvin (o K or K)
 That means we’ll need to convert other measures
to our standard
Basic Quantities & Units
DIMENSION SI UNIT SI UNIT
NAME NAME SYMBOL

LENGTH l meter m

TIME t second s

MASS m kilogram kg

TEMPERATURE T kelvin K

ELECTRIC
I ampere A
CURRENT
Length (m)
 Length
1 cm  10-2 m
1 inch  2.54 cm

1 ft = 0.3048 m ; 1 m = 3.281 ft;

1 mile = 1.609 km ; 1 km = 0.6214 mile;

1 light-year = 9.461x1012 km  1016 m

 Some Measured Lengths (m)
Nucleus 10-15 Blue whale 30
Atom 10-11 Earth diameter 1.3x107
DNA diameter 2x10-9 Sun diameter 1.2x109
Small virus 2x10-8 Earth-Sun 1.5x1011
distance
Large bacterium 10-6 Solar system 1013
diameter
Eukaryotic cell 10-5 Milky Way 2x1021
diameter
Human 1-2 Distance to 1.4x1026
furthest observed
galaxies
Typical Lengths in the Universe
 TIME

Defined as: of a mean solar day

Now defined as 9 192 631 770 times

Periods of vibrations of Cs-133 atom
 Typical time intervals
Time Intervals Elapsed Time
Nuclear events 10-23  Dinosaur
extinction 2.0x1015
10-10
Atomic events 10-15  First multi-cellular
organisms 2.4x10 16
10-9
Contraction of
10-1 Life on Earth 1.2x1017
muscle

Typical bacterial Formation of the

generation time 3x10 3
Earth 1.4x1017
Large mammal Formation of the
lifetime 109 Universe 4.4x1017
MASS
 Fundamental or Primary Quantities
 7 SI base units: those from which all others are derived

 meter (m) length

 kilogram (kg) weight
 second (s) time
 ampere (A) current
 kelvin (K) temperature
 candela (cd) luminosity
 mole (mol) molecular quantity

 Identify physical examples, and electrical examples ?

 Derived or Secondary Quantities
• “SI derived unit”: derived from base units
• Unlimited number of derived units!
• Some examples:

– meter / second m/s velocity

– meter / second squared m/s2 acceleration
– newton (N) kg·m / s2 force
– pascal (Pa) N / m2 pressure
– joule (J) N·m energy
– volt (V) kg⋅m2⋅s−3⋅A−1 voltage
– watt (W) J/s power
– ohm (Ω) V/A resistance
– farad (F) C/V capacitance
– henry (H) V⋅s / A inductance
– hertz (Hz) 1/s frequency
 Examples of Derived Quantities
 Common examples are area (a product of two lengths) and
speed (a ratio of a length to a time interval).
 Another example of a derived quantity is density. The
density r (Greek letter rho) of any substance is defined as
its mass per unit volume:
Dimensional Analysis
 Dimensional Symbols

 The symbols we use to specify the

dimensions of length, mass, and time are
L, M, and T, respectively.
 Analysis of an Equation
 Show that the expression v = at, where v represents
speed, a acceleration, and t an instant of time, is
dimensionally correct.
 Analysis of a Power Law
 Suppose we are told that the acceleration a of a particle moving with
uniform speed v in a circle of radius r is proportional to some power of
r, say rn, and some power of v, say vm. Determine the values of n and
m and write the simplest form of an equation for the acceleration.
 Conversion of Units

length

10.0 in.

25.4 cm
BELLWORK

1. Suppose there are 12 slices of pizza

in one pizza. How many slices are in
7 pizzas?
Given: 7 pizzas
Want: # of slices
Conversion: 12 slices = one pizza
Solution

 Check your work…

7 pizzas 12 slices 84 slices

X =
1 1 pizza
How Does Dimensional Analysis Work?

 A conversion factor is used, along

with what you’re given, to determine
what the new unit will be.
Examples of Conversion Factors

 60 s = 1 min
 60 min = 1 h
 24 h = 1 day
 Examples of Conversions

 You can write any conversion factors as

fractions.

For example, you can write:

60 s = 1 min

as 60s or 1 min
1 min 60 s
Examples of Conversions

 Again, just be careful how you write

the fraction.
 The fraction must be written so that
like units cancel.
 How many minutes are in 2.5 hours?

Conversion factor

2.5 hr x 60 min = 150 min

1 hr

cancel
Learning Check #1

2. How old are you in days?

Given: 17 years
Want: # of days
Conversion: 365 days = one year
Solution

 Check your work…

17 years 365 days 6.205 x 103days

X =
1 1 year
Learning Check #2

3. There are 2.54 cm in one inch. How

many inches are in 17.3 cm?

Given: 17.3 cm
Want: # of inches
Conversion: 2.54 cm = one inch
Solution

 Check your work…

17.3 cm 1 inch
X 2.54 cm = 6.81 inches
1

Be careful!!! The fraction bar means divide.

 Sample Problem

 You have $7.25 in your pocket in quarters.

How many quarters do you have?

7.25 dollars 4 quarters

X = 29 quarters
1 dollar
Learning Check # 3
A rattlesnake is 2.44 m long. How long is
the snake in cm?

a) 2440 cm
b) 244 cm
c) 24.4 cm
Solution

A rattlesnake is 2.44 m long. How long

is the snake in cm?
b) 244 cm

2.44 m x 100 cm = 244 cm

1m
 Learning Check # 4

How many seconds are in 1.4 days?

Unit plan: days hr min seconds

60 min x 60 s = 1.2 x 105 s

1.4 day x 24 hr x
1 hr 1 min
1 day
 Wait a minute!

What is wrong with the following setup?

1.4 day x 1 day x 60 min x 60 sec

24 hr 1 hr 1 min
Multiple-Step Problems

 Most problems are not simple one-step

solutions. Sometimes, you will have to
perform multiple conversions.
 Example: How old are you in hours?
Given: 17 years
Want: # of hours
Conversion #1: 365 days = one year
Conversion #2: 24 hours = one day
Solution

 Check your work…

17 years 365 days 24 hours

X 1 year X 1 day =
1

148,920 hours
Combination Units

 Dimensional Analysis can also be

used for combination units.
 Like converting km/h into cm/s.
 Write the fraction in a “clean” manner:

km/h becomes km
h
Combination Units

 Example: Convert 0.083 km/h into m/s.

Given: 0.083 km/h

Want: # m/s
Conversion #1: 1000 m = 1 km
Conversion #2: 1 hour = 60 minutes
Conversion #3: 1 minute = 60 seconds
Solution

 Check your work…

0.083 km X 1000 m = 83 m
1 hour 1 km 1 hour

83 m 1 hour 1 min =
X 60 min X 60 sec
1 hour

0.023 m
sec
 Problems

 Section 1.1 Standards of Length, Mass,

and Time
 Section 1.3 Dimensional Analysis
 Section 1.4 Conversion of Units
 Additional Problems
 Challenge Problems