What Are The Prefixes?

The following two tables show the most commonly used prefixes for S.I.
base units.
Firstly, we have prefixes that talk about multiples of a unit (i.e. more than
one)...
Multiple Prefix Abbreviation
10 deca da
10^2 = 100 hecto h
10^3 = 1000 kilo k
10^6 mega M
10^9 giga G
10^12 tera T
... and now we have the prefixes corresponding to fractions of a whole
unit ...
Fraction Prefix Abbreviation
10^-1 = 1/10 deci d
10^-2 = 1/100 centi c
10^-3 = 1/1000 milli m
10^-6 micro µ
10^-9 nano n
10^-12 pico p
10^-15 femto f
10^-18 atto a
NOTES:
1. A notation like 10^6 means 10 raised to power 6, or a "1" followed
by six "0"s (i.e. 10^6=1000000). We represent it this way because
unfortunately superscripts are not possible in this program.
2. It is important not just to get an abbreviation's letter(s) correct, but
also to have it in the proper case (upper- or lower-case). There is a big
difference between 1 mm and 1 Mm!
3. The abbreviation for the prefix "micro" (µ ) is the Greek letter mu.
4. Finally, notice how, except for the first couple of entries in each
table, the prefixes increase (or decrease) by multiples of 1000.
Historically, it has been found that this keeps measurements to a
managable number of digits. For example, it is easy to tell the size of
475.1 grams. However, to the nearest 1000, how big is 12650384? Notice
how you had to count the digits carefully? It could have been easier if I
wrote this number as 12650.384 x 10^3. Then you can quickly see that it
is closest to 12 650 lots of one thousand.

1
Table of S.I. Standards
Definition of the S.I. standards
Last
Unit Definition Revisi
on
The length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during
metr
a time interval of 1/( 299 792 458 299 792 458 ) of a 1983
e
second.
kilogr A unit of mass; it is equal to the mass of the international
1901
am prototype of the kilogram.
The duration of 9 192 631 770 9 192 631 770 periods of
secon radiation corresponding to the transistion between the
1967
d two hyperline levels of the ground state of the caesium-
133 atom.
The constant current which, if maintained in two straight
parallel conductors of infinite length, of negligible cross-
ampe
section, and placed one metre apart in vacuum, would 1948
re
produce between the conductors a force equal to 2 x
10^(-7) newton/metre.
A unit of thermodynamic temperature. The kelvin is the
kelvi
fraction 1/273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature of 1967
n
the triple point of water.
The candela is the luminosity intensity, in a given
direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation
cand
of the frequency 540 x 10^12 hertz and that has a 1979
ela
radiant intensity in that direction of 1/683 watt per
steradian.
The mole is the amount of substance in a system which
contains as many elementary entities as there are carbon
atoms in 0.012 kilogram of carbon-12. The elementary
mole 1971
entities must be specified and may be atoms, molecules,
ions, electrons, other particles, or specified groups of
such particles
Notes
• Some units are defined in terms of other units. For example, the
second in the definition of the metre.
• The definition of the kilogram is by far the oldest and is the only unit
that "suffers" from having an international prototype. That means that
2
somewhere in the world there is a block of mass that the international
scientific community had agreed weighs exactly one kilogram. Every
other weight is measured relative to this prototype. Consequently, if
somebody dropped the prototype and a little bit fell off, everything else
would weigh a little bit more (in kilograms), since the definition of a
kilogram would be a smaller mass.
• The triple point of water that is mentioned in the definiton of the
kelvin, is the temperature at which ice, liquid water and steam can all
exist simultaneously. You may recognise this by its more familiar
temperature of zero degrees Celsius.
• The steridian that is mentioned in the definition of the candela is a
three-dimensional analogue of an angle. In effect, if we take a sphere of
unit radius, then a segment of one steridian covers one quarter of the
surface area of the sphere.

The S.I. Base Units

The unit of measurement for any physical quantity is derived from a
combination of the seven base units. These base units are:
1. metre (m) -- length
2. kilogram (kg) -- mass
3. second (s) -- time
4. ampere (A) -- amount of electric current
5. kelvin (K) -- temperature
6. candela (cd) -- brightness (of light)
7. mole (mol) -- amount of (chemical) substance
Each of these units is carefully defined and all other measurements are in
relation to these definitions (or standards). The page about standards
shows how these definitions are made.
A guiding principle of the S.I. units is that new units can be formed from
the base units to avoid unnecessarily large or small numbers. This is done
through the use of prefixes, which is the subject of the next page.

Other Units In Common Use

Apart from the SI units we have discussed so far, there are some other
units in common usage. These are so well-known thatthey are often used
in place of the appropriate SI unit. Sometimes they are simply more
practical (for example, we don't measure temperature in kelvins, since
using degrees celsius leads to smaller numbers), or they may simply be
the historical units in a specialised field.
Some examples of common (non-SI) units
Used to
Abbr
Units measure . Notes
.
..
tonne t mass / 1 tonne = 1000 kg
3
stone st Not to be confused with the ton which is
pound lb weight 2240 pounds
ounce oz 1 lb = 2.2 kg
atmospher
atm
e 1 atm = 10^5 Pa (* see note below)
mm
millimetre pressure 1 atm = 76 mm Hg
Hg
of mercury 1 mb = 100 Pa (a meteorological unit)
mb
millibar
litre L 1 L = 10^(-3) m^3
volume
cup 1 cup = 250 mL
(capacity)
teaspoon tspn 1 tspn = 5 mL
0 °C = 273.16 K
degree temperatur
°C A change of one degree Celsius is equal
Celsius e
to a change of one kelvin.
Nautical n
distance 1 n mile = 1.852 km
mile mile
kilometres k/h
More common than m/s
per hour (kph) velocity
1 kn = 1 n mile / h
the knot kn
hectare ha area 1 ha = 10 000 m^2
kilowatt
kW energy 1 kW h = 3.60 MJ (* see note below)
hour
minute min
These are useful multiples of the second.
hour h
time Our system of time is based on multiples
day
of 60 for historical reasons only.
year
Notes
• Pa is the abbreviation for Pascal, which is the SI unit for pressure.
One Pascal is one newton per square metre (1 Pa = 1 N/m^2). The
newton (N) is itself a shorthand notation for the SI unit of force.
1 N = 1 kg m/s^2, is the force required to accelerate a mass of one
kilogram at a rate of one metre per second every second.
• J is the abbreviation for Joule, a unit of energy or work. One joule is
the amount of work required to apply a force of one newton over a
distance of one metre. In other words, 1 J = 1 Nm = kg m^2/s^2. The
watt (W) is an older measure of energy and does not convert so nicely to
SI units (i.e. there is a conversion factor involved).
• Some of these units (such as minutes) are part of the metric system,
however they are not SI units, as they are not derived from base units
multiplied by powers of ten.

4
SI Prefixes
Numb Prefi Symb Numb Prefi Symb
er x ol er x ol
deka 10 -1 deci- d
10 1 da
- centi
10 -2 c
hect -
10 2 h
o- 10 -3 milli- m
10 3 kilo- k micr
10 -6
meg o-
10 6 M
a- nano
10 -9 n
10 9 giga- G -
12
10 tera- T 10 -12 pico- p
15
10 peta- P femt
10 -15 f
10 18
exa- E o-
10 21
zeta- Z 10 -18 atto- a
yotta zepto
10 24 Y 10 -21 z
- -
yocto
10 -24 y
-

"I have three”?

Numbers are meaningless without the correct units!

Dimension is an abstract quality of measurement without scale (e.g.

length).
A unit is a number which specifies a previously agreed scale (e.g.
metres).
There are four fundamental dimensions:
• length
• time
• mass
• electric charge

5
The Systeme International d'Unites (SI) (1960) is based upon
seven principal units:
Nam Abbrevi
Category: Definition:
e: ation:
The distance light travels in a vacuum in
Length metre m
1/299792458 of a second.
The mass of an international prototype in
kilogr
Mass kg the form of a platinum-iridium cylinder
am
kept at Sevres in France.
The time taken for 9192631770 periods of
secon
Time s vibration of the caesium-133 atom to
d
occur.
The current which produces a specified
Electric ampe
A force between two parallel wires which
current re
are 1 metre apart in a vacuum.
Temperatur K 1/273.16 of the thermodynamic
kelvin
e (not °K) temperature of the triple point of water.
The amount of substance that contains as
Amount of
mole mol many elementary units as there are
substance
atoms in 0.012 kg of carbon-12.
The intensity of a source of light of a
Luminous cande specified frequency, which gives a
cd
intensity la specified amount of power in a given
direction.

Derived S.I. Units:

Many other units are derived from the 7 principal SI units, e.g:
farad [F]
The SI unit of the capacitance of an electrical system, i.e. its capacity to
store electricity. This is a large unit as defined and is often used as a
microfarad [µF]. (Michael Faraday, 1791-1867)
hertz [Hz]
The SI unit of the frequency of a periodic phenomenon. One hertz
indicates that 1 cycle of the phenomenon occurs every second. Higher
frequencies such as the kilohertz [kHz] and megahertz [MHz] are
commonly used. (Heinrich Rudolph Hertz, 1857-94)
joule [J]
The SI unit of work or energy. One joule is the amount of work done when
an applied force of 1 newton moves through a distance of 1 metre in the
direction of the force. (James Prescott Joule, 1818-89)

6
Newton [N]
The SI unit of force. One Newton is the force required to give a mass of 1
kilogram an acceleration of 1 metre per second per second. (Isaac
Newton, 1642-1727)
ohm [W]
The SI unit of resistance of an electrical conductor. Its symbol is the Greek
letter known as 'omega' (W). (Georg Simon Ohm, 1789-1854)
pascal [Pa]
The SI unit of pressure. One Pascal is the pressure generated by a force of
1 Newton acting on an area of 1 square metre. A small unit, often used
as the kilopascal [kPa]. (Blaise Pascal, 1623-62)
siemen [S]
The SI unit of conductance. One siemen is the conductance at which a
potential of 1 volt causes a current of 1 ampere to flow. Often expressed
as microsiemen [µS] for aqueous solutions. (Named after ???)
volt [V]
The SI unit of electric potential. One volt is the difference of potential
between two points of an electrical conductor when a current of 1
ampere flowing between those points dissipates a power of 1 watt.
(Count Alessandro Giuseppe Anastasio Volta, 1745-1827)
watt [W]
The unit used to measure power or the rate of doing work. One watt is a
power of 1 joule per second. (James Watt, 1736-1819)

S.I. Prefixes:
S.I. units can be made bigger or smaller by the use of appropriate
prefixes, for example:
• The farad is a rather large unit for most uses, so 1*10-6 F = 1
microfarad (1 µF) is commonly used.
• 1*103 Hz = 1 kilohertz [1 kHz] and 1*106 Hz = 1 megahertz [1 MHz].
• The watt is a small unit, generally used in terms of 1000 watts at a
time = 1 kilowatt [1 kW]. 1*106 watts = 1 megawatt [MW] and 1*109
watts = 1 gigawatt [GW].
Name: Symbol: Size: Factor:
24
yotta Y 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 10
21
zetta Z 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 10
18
exa E 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 10
15
peta P 1 000 000 000 000 000 10
12
tera T 1 000 000 000 000 10
9
giga G 1 000 000 000 10
6
mega M 1 000 000 10
3
kilo k 1 000 10

7
 2
hecto h 100 10
1
deca da 10 10
1
-1
deci d 0.1 10
-2
centi c 0.01 10
-3
milli m 0.001 10
-6
micro µ 0.000 001 10
-9
nano n 0.000 000 001 10
-12
pico p 0.000 000 000 001 10
-15
femto f 0.000 000 000 000 001 10
-18
atto a 0.000 000 000 000 000 001 10
-21
zepto z 0.000 000 000 000 000 000 001 10
-24
yocto y 0.000 000 000 000 000 000 000 001 10

Usage:
• Many units are eponymous, i.e. named after people who were
prominent in early work done within the field in which the unit is used.
• A unit which is named after a person is written in lower case
(newton, volt, pascal etc.) when named in full, but should start with a
capital letter (N, V, Pa, etc.) when abbreviated.
• The unit or abbreviation should be separated from the number to
which it refers by a space, e.g. "99 µF", not "99µF".
• Unit abbreviations (such as J, N, g, Pa, etc.) are NEVER followed by a
full-stop unless at the end of a sentence.
• Units written in abbreviated form are NEVER pluralised.
• To make numbers easier to read they may be divided into groups of
3 separated by spaces (or half-spaces) but NOT commas.
• Any unit may take only ONE prefix. For example "millimillimetre"
should be written as "micrometre" (µm).
Why do we need S.I. units?

8
 S.I. Units make it easy to convert from one scale to
another, e.g:
If x = 1 m, volume of cube = 1 * 1 * 1 = 1 m3
Since 1 m = 100 cm, volume of cube = 100 * 100 *
100 = 1*106 cm3
and 1 m = 1*106 µm, volume of cube = 1*106 *
1*106 * 1*106 = 1*1018 µm3
Therefore, 1 cm3 = 1*1012 µm3, etc.

Centigrade and Celsius:

The Centigrade (from the Latin centum, "a hundred", plus gradus,
"degree") scale of temperature (1801) is defined as "a thermometric
scale on which the interval between the freezing point of water and the
boiling point of water is divided into 100 degrees with 0° representing the
freezing point and 100° the boiling point".
This has now been replaced by the Celsius scale (named after Anders
Celsius, 1701-1744), "an international thermometric scale on which the
interval between the triple point * of water and the boiling point of water
is divided into 99.99 degrees with 0.01° representing the triple point and
100° the boiling point".
* The triple point of water is the condition of temperature and pressure
under which the gaseous, liquid, and solid phases of a substance can
exist in equilibrium.
However, the S.I. unit of temperature is the Kelvin:
Example:
K = 273 + °C
25°C = 273 + 25 = 298 K

Work and energy

Energy is the ability of a system to perform work (the transfer of energy
from one system to another).
Power is the rate at which work is done, i.e. the amount of work per unit
time.
Force is an action which maintains or alters the position of a body, or
distorts it. Because force has both magnitude and direction, it is known as
a vector quantity.
The mass of an object is a measure of the object's resistance to changes
in either the speed or direction. Weight and mass are not the same thing!
The weight of an object is the force it exerts under a given gravitational
force. Thus the weight of an astronaut is different on the moon than on

9
the Earth, but their mass is constant. Weight should therefore be
measured in newtons and mass in kilograms.
There are five main forms of energy:
• Mechanical energy: associated with motion.
• Heat: caused by the motion of the particles that make up matter.
• Electromagnetic energy: the energy given off by moving electric
charges.
• Chemical energy: the energy released or absorbed when bonds
between atoms are formed or broken.
• Nuclear energy: the energy stored in the nuclei of atoms.
Dimensional
Concept: Algebraic formula: S.I. Unit:
Formula:
Force mass * acceleration kg * m s-2 newton (N)
Work force * distance N*m joule (J)
Power work / time J/s watt (W)
mass * acceleration due
Weight N * 9.8 m-2 N (kg)
to gravity (g)
Gravitational
weight * height N*m J
potential energy
0.5 * kg * m2 s-
Kinetic energy 0.5 * mass * speed2 2 J

pascal
Pressure force / area N / m2
(Pa)
Electrical
current * resistance A*W volt (V)
potential
Electrical
potential / current V/A ohm (W)
resistance
siemen (S)
Electrical
1 / resistance 1/W (not s =
conductivity
second)

The joule is the SI unit of work or energy, equal to the work done
by a force of one newton acting through a distance of one metre.
J=N*m
"Work" measures the energy transfer that occurs when an object is
moved over a distance by an external force at least part of which is
applied in the direction of the movement. If the force is constant, the
energy expended can be calculated by multiplying the length of the path
by the force acting along the path.
Example:
If a pint of beer weighs 675 grams, how much work is done in raising the

10
glass 0.75 metres from the bar to your mouth? The force exerted by the
glass due to gravity is given by the equation:
force = mass * acceleration, so in this case:
force = mass * acceleration due to gravity
= 0.675 kg * 9.8 m s-2 = 6.615 N
Work = force * distance (J = N * m), so:
6.615 N * 0.75 m = 4.96 J
Kinetic energy is the energy of motion. An object which is in motion has
kinetic energy.
Kinetic energy = 0.5 * mass * velocity2
Example:
What is the kinetic energy of an 85 kg man running at 4.25 m-2 ?
0.5(85 * 4.252) = 768 J
What is his kinetic energy if he sprints at 8.9 m-2 ?
0.5(85 * 8.92) = 3366 J
Note that kinetic energy is directly proportional to the mass of the moving
object, but proportional to the square of its speed, e.g. as speed doubles,
kinetic energy increases four-fold, but tripling the speed increases the
energy nine-fold! That's why high speed car crashes are so dangerous!
Potential energy is the energy stored in an object as the result of its
position. The main sources of potential energy are elastic potential (as in
bent branches and bows and arrows) and gravitational potential (as in
falling down stairs).
Potential energy = mass * gravity * height (defined with respect to an
arbitrary zero height)
There is a direct relationship between stored gravitational potential and
the height which an object falls - as you will know if an apple falls on your
head from five metres compared with one metre!

Electricity:
Ohm's Law states that:
The potential difference (voltage) across an ideal conductor is
proportional to the current through it.
The constant of proportionality is called the "resistance", R.
Ohm's Law is given by:
V=I*R
Alternatively:
I = V/R
R = V/I
where V is the potential difference between two points which include a
resistance R and I is the current flowing through the resistance.
Electrical power (in watts, W) = V * I
In biology, conductance is often quoted, S = 1/R; i.e. the ability of a
solution to allow an electric current to flow through it; the reciprocal of

11
resistance. Conductance (or conductivity) is usually expressed as
microsiemens per cm (µS cm-1).
Example:
A water sample from a lake has a resistance of 6666 W cm-1.
What is its conductivity?
S = 1/R
S = 1/6666 = 1.5*10-4 = 150 µS cm-1

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Mathematical constants, Prefixes and Suffixes

pi = 3.1415926536
e = 2.7182818284
log e = 0.434294
ln 10 = 2.30259
1 radian = 57.2958 degrees or 57 degrees 17 minutes 45
seconds
log 2 = 0.301029995664
log 3 = 0.47712125471
log 7 = 0.84509804

Re: Mathematical constants, Prefixes and Suffixes

Prefixes
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I=1
II = 2
III = 3
IV = 4
V=5
X = 10
L = 50
C = 100
D = 500
M = 1000

17