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The Very Basics...
In chemistry, we don't want to be ambiguous (unclear) so we strive to quantify matter. That means that measurement is crucial so there are a few extra things you need to know. Quantity means you are dealing with numbers. The very first thing you need to know about measurement in chemistry is that English (or Imperial) Units are never used in chemistry. DO NOT USE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING: Inches, Yards, Pounds, Miles, Ounces! The United States and two other countries are the only countries still using this system. That's right, the English don't even use the English System anymore!
In Chemistry class, we will ONLY be using Metric Units or SI Units! SI = System International. Stick with SI -- you can't go wrong.
Why? As it turns out, having too many systems is a bad idea for projects that are collaborated. And guess what? Nearly everything you touch gets manufactured in different countries. Think about a car that may have an engine made in Germany, a body constructed in Japan with parts that were made in another country: if every country used a separate system all of these measurements would need to be converted accurately each time they go to a new country to get put together. This could lead to mistakes that could literally cost millions. Sadly, this has already happened.
Units are the letters that come after a number, like cm (stands for centimeters). A unit describes the type of measurement. The base units, and their notation (in parenthesis) you should know are:
SI Units to Know
The ampere (A) - unit of measurement of electric current
The kilogram (kg)* - unit of measurement of mass.
The meter (m) - unit of measurement of length
The second (s) - unit of measurement of time
The kelvin (K) - unit of measurement of thermodynamic temperature
The mole (mol) - unit of measurement of amount of substance. 6.02 X 1023 of anything!
The candela (cd) - unit of measurement of luminous (light) intensity
* The base unit for conversion purposes is the gram.
-Units above in bold are the main units we will use in Chemistry. You should ABSOLUTELY know these.
-A notable Exception is Celsius. We often still use Celsius (which is a metric unit) in Chemistry.
Important topics to master in this section..
- Measurement Systems
- Accuracy vs Precision
- Estimated Numbers
- Metric Prefixes
- Scientific Notation express your numbers scientifically ♡
- Metric to Metric Conversions
- Reading Equipment graduated cylinders, meter sticks, triple beam balances..
- Density
- Temperature Conversions
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Boyle's Law(gas law)
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