This course uses metric units.

The metric system has prefix modifiers that are multiples of 10. If we skip some of the seldom  used ones, here is a list.

  • A kilometer is 1000 meters
  • A meter is the basic unit of length
  • A centimeter is 1/100 meter
  • A millimeter is 1/1000 meter

As we move down the units, the next unit is one tenth as long (a hundredth or thousandth, if we have skipped one or two intervening steps). As we move upward, each unit is 10 times as long.

       Because of this x10 scaling, metric units are much more convenient to use than "English" ones:

        A meter is just a little longer than a yard - 39.4 inches. A centimeter is then 0.394 inches. A kilometer is about 62% of a mile.