What is the numerical value of the prefix micro. Abbreviated notation of numerical values. About the prefix "kilo"

Roof 10.04.2022

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With the exception of specially stipulated cases, the "Regulations on Units of Quantities Allowed for Use in the Russian Federation" allows the use of both Russian and international designations of units, but prohibits, however, their simultaneous use.

Prefixes for multiple units

Multiple units- units that are an integer number of times (10 to some extent) higher than the basic unit of measurement of some physical quantity. The International System of Units (SI) recommends the following decimal prefixes for denoting multiple units:

Decimal multiplier	Console		Designation		Example
Decimal multiplier	Russian	international	Russian	international	Example
10 1	soundboard	Deca	Yes	da	dal - decalitre
10 2	hecto	hecto	G	h	hPa - hectopascal
10 3	kilo	kilo	to	k	kN - kilonewton
10 6	mega	mega	M	M	MPa - megapascal
10 9	giga	giga	G	G	GHz - gigahertz
10 12	tera	tera	T	T	TV - teravolt
10 15	peta	peta	P	P	Pflops - petaflops
10 18	exa	exa	E	E	Em - exameter
10 21	zetta	zetta	W	Z	ZeV - zettaelectronvolt
10 24	yotta	yotta	And	Y	Ig - yottagram

Applying decimal prefixes to units of measure in binary terms

The Regulation on Units of Values Allowed for Use in the Russian Federation establishes that the name and designation of the unit of quantity of information “byte” (1 byte = 8 bits) are used with binary prefixes “Kilo”, “Mega”, “Giga”, which correspond to multipliers 2 10 , 2 20 and 2 30 (1 KB = 1024 bytes, 1 MB = 1024 KB, 1 GB = 1024 MB).

The same Regulations allow the use of the international designation of the unit of information with the prefixes "K" "M" "G" (KB, MB, GB, Kbyte, Mbyte, Gbyte).

In programming and the computer-related industry, the same prefixes "kilo", "mega", "giga", "tera", etc., when applied to values that are multiples of powers of two (e.g., bytes), can mean both the multiplicity of 1000 and 1024=2 10 . Which system is used is sometimes clear from the context (for example, for the amount of RAM, the multiplicity of 1024 is used, and for the total amount of disk memory of hard drives, the multiplicity of 1000 is used).

1 kilobyte	= 1024 1	= 2 10	= 1024 bytes
1 megabyte	= 1024 2	= 2 20	= 1,048,576 bytes
1 gigabyte	= 1024 3	= 2 30	= 1,073,741,824 bytes
1 terabyte	= 1024 4	= 2 40	= 1,099,511,627,776 bytes
1 petabyte	= 1024 5	= 2 50	= 1,125,899,906,842,624 bytes
1 exabyte	= 1024 6	= 2 60	= 1,152,921,504,606,846,976 bytes
1 zettabyte	= 1024 7	= 2 70	= 1 180 591 620 717 411 303 424 bytes
1 yottabyte	= 1024 8	= 2 80	= 1 208 925 819 614 629 174 706 176 bytes

To avoid confusion, in April 1999 the International Electrotechnical Commission introduced a new standard for naming binary numbers (see Binary prefixes).

Prefixes for submultiple units

submultiple units constitute a certain proportion (part) of the established unit of measurement of a certain quantity. The International System of Units (SI) recommends the following prefixes for submultiple units:

Decimal multiplier	Console		Designation		Example
Decimal multiplier	Russian	international	Russian	international	Example
10 −1	deci	deci	d	d	dm - decimeter
10 −2	centi	centi	With	c	cm - centimeter
10 −3	Milli	milli	m	m	mH - millinewton
10 −6	micro	micro	mk		micron - micrometer, micron
10 −9	nano	nano	n	n	nm - nanometer
10 −12	pico	pico	P	p	pF - picofarad
10 −15	femto	femto	f	f	fs - femtosecond
10 −18	atto	atto	a	a	ac - attosecond
10 −21	zepto	zepto	h	z	sCl - zeptocoulomb
10 −24	yokto	yocto	and	y	ig - yoctogram

Origin of prefixes

Prefixes were introduced into the SI gradually. In 1960, the XI General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) adopted a number of names of prefixes and corresponding symbols for factors ranging from 10 −12 to 10 12 . The prefixes for 10 −15 and 10 −18 were added by the XII CGPM in 1964, and for 10 15 and 10 18 by the XV CGPM in 1975. The last addition to the list of prefixes took place at the XIX CGPM in 1991, when they were adopted prefixes for factors 10 −24 , 10 −21 , 10 21 and 10 24 .

Most of the prefixes are derived from the words of the ancient Greek language. Deca - from other Greek. δέκα "ten", hecto- from other Greek. ἑκατόν "hundred", kilo - from other Greek. χίλιοι "thousand", mega- from other Greek. μέγας , that is, “big”, giga- is other Greek. γίγας - "giant", and tera - from other Greek. τέρας which means "monster". Peta- (other Greek. πέντε ) and exa- (other Greek. ἕξ ) correspond to five and six thousand digits and are translated, respectively, as “five” and “six”. Dolny micro- (from other Greek. μικρός ) and nano- (from other Greek. νᾶνος ) are translated as "small" and "dwarf". From one word, other Greek. ὀκτώ (okto), meaning "eight", the prefixes iotta (1000 8) and iokto (1/1000 8) are formed.

As "thousand" the prefix milli, which goes back to lat. mille. Latin roots also have the prefix centi - from percent("hundred") and deci - from decimus("tenth"), zetta - from September("seven"). Zepto ("seven") comes from lat. September or from fr. sept.

The prefix atto is derived from dates. atten ("eighteen"). Femto goes back to dat. and Norwegian femten or other scand. fimmtān and means "fifteen".

The prefix pico comes either from fr. pico("beak" or "small amount"), or from Italian. piccolo, i.e. "small".

Rules for using prefixes

Applicability of prefixes

Due to the fact that the name of the unit of mass in SI - kilogram - contains the prefix "kilo", for the formation of multiple and submultiple units of mass, a submultiple unit of mass is used - grams (0.001 kg). On the other hand, a submultiple unit of mass - grams can be used without attaching a prefix.

Prefixes are used to a limited extent with units of time: multiple prefixes are rarely combined with them at all, although this is not formally prohibited - “kilosecond” is used only in astronomy, and in cosmology and geochronology, the units “ gigagod" (billion years) and "megayear" (million years); prefixes are attached only to the second (millisecond, microsecond, etc.).

In accordance with the "Regulations on Units of Quantities Allowed for Use in the Russian Federation", the names and designations of off-system units of mass, time, flat angle, length, area, pressure, optical power, linear density, speed, acceleration and rotational speed are not used with prefixes .

In practice, only kilo- is used with meters from multiple prefixes: instead of megameters (Mm), gigameters (Gm), etc., they write “thousands of kilometers”, “millions of kilometers”, etc.; instead of square megameters (Mm²), they write "millions of square kilometers."

Prefixes corresponding to exponents that are not divisible by 3 (hecto-, deca-, deci-, centi-) are not recommended. Only the centimeter (which is the basic unit in the CGS system) and the decibel are widely used, and to a lesser extent the decimeter and hectopascal (in meteorological reports), as well as the hectare. In some countries, the volume of wine and other drinks is measured in decalitres and hectoliters (in retail sales also in centiliters). Sometimes a hectogram unit (in Italy its colloquial name is etto) is used to measure the mass of food.

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Notes

Literature

SI prefixes

Multiples prefixes

Dolnye prefixes

An excerpt characterizing the SI prefixes

Andrey was silent: it was both pleasant and unpleasant for him that his father understood him. The old man got up and handed the letter to his son.
“Listen,” he said, “do not worry about your wife: what can be done will be done.” Now listen: give the letter to Mikhail Ilarionovich. I am writing that he will use you in good places and not keep you as an adjutant for a long time: a bad post! Tell him that I remember him and love him. Yes, write how he will accept you. If it's good, serve. Nikolai Andreich Bolkonsky's son, out of mercy, will not serve anyone. Well, now come here.
He spoke in such a rapid way that he did not finish half of the words, but the son was used to understanding him. He led his son to the bureau, threw back the lid, pulled out a drawer, and took out a notebook covered in his large, long, concise handwriting.
“I must die before you.” Know that here are my notes, to transfer them to the sovereign after my death. Now here - here is a pawn ticket and a letter: this is a prize to the one who writes the history of the Suvorov wars. Submit to the academy. Here are my remarks, after me read for yourself, you will find something useful.
Andrei did not tell his father that he would probably live for a long time. He knew he didn't need to say it.
“I will do everything, father,” he said.
- Well, now goodbye! He let his son kiss his hand and hugged him. “Remember one thing, Prince Andrei: if they kill you, the old man will hurt me ...” He suddenly fell silent and suddenly continued in a loud voice: “and if I find out that you did not behave like the son of Nikolai Bolkonsky, I will be ... ashamed! he screeched.
“You could not tell me that, father,” said the son, smiling.
The old man was silent.
“I also wanted to ask you,” continued Prince Andrei, “if they kill me and if I have a son, do not let him go away from you, as I told you yesterday, so that he grows up with you ... please.
- Don't give it to your wife? the old man said and laughed.
They stood silently facing each other. The old man's quick eyes were fixed directly on his son's eyes. Something quivered in the lower part of the old prince's face.
- Goodbye ... go! he suddenly said. - Get up! he shouted in an angry and loud voice, opening the office door.
– What is, what? - asked the princess and princess, seeing Prince Andrei and for a moment the figure of an old man in a white coat, without a wig and in old man's glasses, leaning out screaming in an angry voice.
Prince Andrei sighed and did not answer.
“Well,” he said, turning to his wife.
And this “well” sounded like a cold mockery, as if he was saying: “now you do your tricks.”
Andre, deja! [Andrey, already!] - said the little princess, turning pale and looking at her husband with fear.
He hugged her. She screamed and fell unconscious on his shoulder.
He gently drew back the shoulder on which she was lying, looked into her face, and carefully seated her in a chair.
- Adieu, Marieie, [Farewell, Masha,] - he said quietly to his sister, kissed her hand in hand and quickly left the room.
The princess was lying in an armchair, m lle Bourienne was rubbing her temples. Princess Mary, supporting her daughter-in-law, with tearful beautiful eyes, was still looking at the door through which Prince Andrei went out, and baptized him. From the study were heard, like shots, the often repeated angry sounds of the old man blowing his nose. As soon as Prince Andrei left, the door of the office quickly opened and a stern figure of an old man in a white coat looked out.
- Left? Well, good! he said, looking angrily at the insensible little princess, shook his head reproachfully and slammed the door.

In October 1805, Russian troops occupied the villages and cities of the Archduchy of Austria, and more new regiments came from Russia and, weighing down the residents with billeting, were located near the Braunau fortress. In Braunau was the main apartment of the commander-in-chief Kutuzov.
On October 11, 1805, one of the infantry regiments that had just arrived at Braunau, waiting for the review of the commander-in-chief, stood half a mile from the city. Despite the non-Russian terrain and situation (orchards, stone fences, tiled roofs, mountains visible in the distance), the non-Russian people, who looked at the soldiers with curiosity, the regiment had exactly the same appearance as any Russian regiment preparing for a show somewhere in the middle of Russia.
In the evening, on the last march, an order was received that the commander-in-chief would watch the regiment on the march. Although the words of the order seemed unclear to the regimental commander, and the question arose of how to understand the words of the order: in marching uniform or not? in the council of battalion commanders, it was decided to present the regiment in full dress on the basis that it is always better to exchange bows than not to bow. And the soldiers, after a thirty-verst march, did not close their eyes, they repaired and cleaned themselves all night; adjutants and company officers counted, expelled; and by morning the regiment, instead of the sprawling disorderly crowd that it had been the day before on the last march, represented a slender mass of 2,000 people, each of whom knew his place, his business, and of whom each button and strap was in its place and shone with cleanliness. . Not only the outer was in good order, but if the commander-in-chief had been pleased to look under the uniforms, then on each he would have seen an equally clean shirt and in each knapsack he would have found a legal number of things, “an awl and a soap,” as the soldiers say. There was only one circumstance about which no one could be calm. It was shoes. More than half of the people had their boots broken. But this shortcoming did not come from the fault of the regimental commander, since, despite repeated demands, the goods from the Austrian department were not released to him, and the regiment traveled a thousand miles.
The regimental commander was an elderly, sanguine general with graying eyebrows and sideburns, thick and broad more from chest to back than from one shoulder to the other. He was wearing a new, brand-new uniform with crumpled folds, and thick golden epaulettes, which, as it were, lifted his stout shoulders upwards rather than downwards. The regimental commander looked like a man happily doing one of the most solemn deeds of life. He paced in front of the front and, as he walked, trembled at every step, slightly arching his back. It was evident that the regimental commander was admiring his regiment, happy with them, that all his mental strength was occupied only by the regiment; but, in spite of this, his trembling gait seemed to say that, in addition to military interests, the interests of social life and the female gender also occupy a considerable place in his soul.
“Well, father Mikhailo Mitrich,” he turned to one battalion commander (the battalion commander leaned forward smiling; it was clear that they were happy), “I got nuts this night. However, it seems, nothing, the regiment is not bad ... Eh?
The battalion commander understood the humorous irony and laughed.
- And in the Tsaritsyn Meadow they would not have driven out of the field.
- What? the commander said.
At this time, on the road from the city, along which the machinations were placed, two horsemen appeared. They were the adjutant and a Cossack riding behind.
The adjutant was sent from the main headquarters to confirm to the regimental commander what was not clear in yesterday's order, namely, that the commander-in-chief wanted to see the regiment in exactly the position in which he walked - in overcoats, in covers and without any preparations.
A member of the Hofkriegsrat from Vienna arrived at Kutuzov the day before, with proposals and demands to join the army of Archduke Ferdinand and Mack as soon as possible, and Kutuzov, not considering this connection advantageous, among other evidence in favor of his opinion, intended to show the Austrian general that sad situation in which troops came from Russia. For this purpose, he wanted to go out to meet the regiment, so that the worse the position of the regiment, the more pleasant it would be for the commander in chief. Although the adjutant did not know these details, he conveyed to the regimental commander the indispensable demand of the commander-in-chief that people be in overcoats and covers, and that otherwise the commander-in-chief would be dissatisfied. After hearing these words, the regimental commander lowered his head, silently shrugged his shoulders and spread his arms with a sanguine gesture.
- Done business! he said. - So I told you, Mikhailo Mitrich, that on a campaign, so in overcoats, - he turned with a reproach to the battalion commander. – Oh, my God! he added, and stepped forward resolutely. - Gentlemen, company commanders! he called out in a voice familiar to command. - Feldwebels! ... Will they come soon? he turned to the visiting adjutant with an expression of respectful courtesy, apparently referring to the person he was talking about.
- In an hour, I think.
- Shall we change clothes?
"I don't know, General...
The regimental commander himself went up to the ranks and ordered them to change into their greatcoats again. The company commanders fled to their companies, the sergeants began to fuss (the overcoats were not quite in order) and at the same instant swayed, stretched out and the previously regular, silent quadrangles hummed with a voice. Soldiers ran and ran up from all sides, tossed them back with their shoulders, dragged knapsacks over their heads, took off their overcoats and, raising their hands high, pulled them into their sleeves.
Half an hour later everything returned to its former order, only the quadrangles turned gray from black. The regimental commander, again with a trembling gait, stepped forward of the regiment and looked at it from afar.
- What else is that? What's this! he shouted, stopping. - Commander of the 3rd company! ..
- Commander of the 3rd company to the general! the commander to the general, the 3rd company to the commander! ... - voices were heard from the ranks, and the adjutant ran to look for the hesitant officer.
When the sounds of zealous voices, distorting, shouting already “the general in the 3rd company”, reached their destination, the required officer appeared from behind the company and, although the man was already elderly and not in the habit of running, awkwardly clinging to his socks, trotted towards the general. The captain's face expressed the anxiety of a schoolboy who is told to say a lesson he has not learned. There were spots on the red (obviously from intemperance) nose, and the mouth did not find position. The regimental commander examined the captain from head to toe as he approached breathlessly, holding his step as he approached.
- You will soon dress people in sundresses! What's this? - the regimental commander shouted, pushing his lower jaw and pointing in the ranks of the 3rd company at a soldier in an overcoat of the color of factory cloth, which differed from other overcoats. - Where were you yourself? The commander-in-chief is expected, and you move away from your place? Eh?... I’ll teach you how to dress people in Cossacks for a review!... Eh?...
The company commander, without taking his eyes off his commander, pressed his two fingers more and more to his visor, as if in this pressing alone he now saw his salvation.
- Well, why are you silent? Who do you have there in the Hungarian dressed up? - strictly joked the regimental commander.
- Your Excellency…
- Well, "your excellency"? Your Excellency! Your Excellency! And what your Excellency - no one knows.
- Your Excellency, this is Dolokhov, demoted ... - the captain said quietly.
- That he was a field marshal, or something, demoted or a soldier? And a soldier should be dressed like everyone else, in uniform.
“Your Excellency, you yourself allowed him to march.
- Allowed? Allowed? That's how you always are, young people,” said the regimental commander, cooling down somewhat. - Allowed? You say something, and you and ... - The regimental commander paused. - You say something, and you and ... - What? he said, getting irritated again. - Please dress people decently ...
And the regimental commander, looking back at the adjutant, with his shuddering gait, went to the regiment. It was evident that he himself liked his irritation, and that, having walked up and down the regiment, he wanted to find another pretext for his anger. Having cut off one officer for an uncleaned badge, another for an irregular row, he approached the 3rd company.
- How are you standing? Where is the leg? Where is the leg? - shouted the regimental commander with an expression of suffering in his voice, another five people did not reach Dolokhov, dressed in a bluish overcoat.
Dolokhov slowly straightened his bent leg and straight, with his bright and insolent look, looked into the general's face.
Why the blue overcoat? Down with… Feldwebel! Change his clothes ... rubbish ... - He did not have time to finish.
“General, I am obliged to carry out orders, but I am not obliged to endure ...” Dolokhov said hastily.

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1 milli [m] = 1000 micro [µ]

Initial value

Converted value

no prefix yotta zetta exa peta tera giga mega kilo hecto deca deci centi milli micro nano pico femto atto zepto yocto

Metric system and International System of Units (SI)

Introduction

In this article, we will talk about the metric system and its history. We will see how and why it began and how it gradually developed into what we have today. We will also look at the SI system, which was developed from the metric system of measures.

For our ancestors, who lived in a world full of dangers, the ability to measure various quantities in their natural habitat made it possible to get closer to understanding the essence of natural phenomena, understanding their environment and gaining the opportunity to somehow influence what surrounded them. That is why people tried to invent and improve various measurement systems. At the dawn of human development, having a measurement system was no less important than it is now. It was necessary to perform various measurements during the construction of housing, sewing clothes of different sizes, cooking, and, of course, trade and exchange could not do without measurement! Many believe that the creation and adoption of the International System of Units SI is the most serious achievement not only of science and technology, but also of the development of mankind in general.

Early measurement systems

In early measurement and number systems, people used traditional objects to measure and compare. For example, it is believed that the decimal system appeared due to the fact that we have ten fingers and toes. Our hands are always with us - that's why since ancient times people used (and still use) fingers for counting. Yet we have not always used base 10 for counting, and the metric system is a relatively new invention. Each region has its own systems of units, and although these systems have much in common, most of the systems are still so different that the conversion of units from one system to another has always been a problem. This problem became more and more serious as trade between different peoples developed.

The accuracy of the first systems of measures and weights directly depended on the size of the objects that surrounded the people who developed these systems. It is clear that the measurements were inaccurate, since the "measuring devices" did not have exact dimensions. For example, body parts were commonly used as a measure of length; mass and volume were measured using the volume and mass of seeds and other small objects, the dimensions of which were more or less the same. We will discuss these units in more detail below.

Measures of length

In ancient Egypt, length was first measured simply elbows, and later royal elbows. The length of the elbow was defined as the segment from the bend of the elbow to the end of the extended middle finger. Thus, the royal cubit was defined as the cubit of the reigning pharaoh. A model cubit was created and made available to the general public so that everyone could make their own measures of length. This, of course, was an arbitrary unit that changed when a new royal took the throne. Ancient Babylon used a similar system, but with slight differences.

The cubit was divided into smaller units: palm, hand, zerets(foot), and you(finger), which were represented respectively by the width of the palm, hand (with thumb), foot and finger. At the same time, they decided to agree on how many fingers in the palm (4), in the hand (5) and elbow (28 in Egypt and 30 in Babylon). It was more convenient and more accurate than measuring ratios every time.

Measures of mass and weight

Measures of weight were also based on the parameters of various objects. Seeds, grains, beans and similar items acted as measures of weight. The classic example of a unit of mass still in use today is carat. Now carats measure the mass of precious stones and pearls, and once the weight of carob seeds, otherwise called carob, was determined as a carat. The tree is cultivated in the Mediterranean, and its seeds are distinguished by the constancy of mass, so it was convenient to use them as a measure of weight and mass. In different places, different seeds were used as small units of weight, and larger units were usually multiples of smaller units. Archaeologists often find similar large weights, usually made of stone. They consisted of 60, 100 and a different number of small units. Since there was no single standard for the number of small items, as well as for their weight, this led to conflicts when sellers and buyers who lived in different places met.

Measures of volume

Initially, volume was also measured using small objects. For example, the volume of a pot or jug was determined by filling it to the top with small objects of a relatively standard volume - like seeds. However, the lack of standardization led to the same problems in measuring volume as in measuring mass.

Evolution of different systems of measures

The ancient Greek system of measures was based on the ancient Egyptian and Babylonian, and the Romans created their own system based on the ancient Greek. Then by fire and sword and, of course, as a result of trade, these systems spread throughout Europe. It should be noted that here we are talking only about the most common systems. But there were many other systems of measures and weights, because exchange and trade were necessary for absolutely everyone. If there was no written language in the given area or it was not customary to record the results of the exchange, then we can only guess how these people measured volume and weight.

There are many regional variants of systems of measures and weights. This is due to their independent development and the influence of other systems on them as a result of trade and conquest. Different systems were not only in different countries, but often within the same country, where each trading city had its own, because the local rulers did not want unification in order to maintain their power. With the development of travel, trade, industry and science, many countries sought to unify systems of measures and weights, at least in the territories of their countries.

Already in the 13th century, and possibly earlier, scientists and philosophers discussed the creation of a unified system of measurements. However, only after the French Revolution and the subsequent colonization of various regions of the world by France and other European countries, which already had their own systems of measures and weights, a new system was developed, adopted in most countries of the world. This new system was decimal metric system. It was based on the base 10, that is, for any physical quantity there was one basic unit in it, and all other units could be formed in a standard way using decimal prefixes. Each such fractional or multiple unit could be divided into ten smaller units, and these smaller units, in turn, could be divided into 10 even smaller units, and so on.

As we know, most of the early measurement systems were not based on base 10. The convenience of the system with base 10 is that the number system we are used to has the same base, which allows you to quickly and conveniently convert from smaller units to large and vice versa. Many scientists believe that the choice of ten as the base of the number system is arbitrary and is related only to the fact that we have ten fingers, and if we had a different number of fingers, then we would certainly use a different number system.

Metric system

In the early days of the metric system, human-made prototypes were used as measures of length and weight, as in previous systems. The metric system has evolved from a system based on real standards and dependence on their accuracy to a system based on natural phenomena and fundamental physical constants. For example, the unit of time, the second, was originally defined as part of the tropical year 1900. The disadvantage of such a definition was the impossibility of experimental verification of this constant in subsequent years. Therefore, the second was redefined as a certain number of periods of radiation corresponding to the transition between two hyperfine levels of the ground state of a radioactive caesium-133 atom at rest at 0 K. The unit of distance, meter, was associated with the wavelength of the emission spectrum of the isotope krypton-86, but later The meter was redefined as the distance traveled by light in a vacuum in a time interval of 1/299,792,458 of a second.

Based on the metric system, the International System of Units (SI) was created. It should be noted that traditionally the metric system includes units of mass, length and time, but in the SI system the number of base units has been expanded to seven. We will discuss them below.

International System of Units (SI)

The International System of Units (SI) has seven basic units for measuring basic quantities (mass, time, length, luminous intensity, amount of matter, electric current, thermodynamic temperature). it kilogram(kg) for mass measurement, second(c) to measure time, meter(m) for distance measurement, candela(cd) to measure the intensity of light, mole(abbreviation mol) to measure the amount of a substance, ampere(A) to measure the strength of the electric current, and kelvin(K) for temperature measurement.

At present, only the kilogram still has a man-made standard, while the rest of the units are based on universal physical constants or on natural phenomena. This is convenient because the physical constants or natural phenomena on which units of measurement are based can be easily checked at any time; moreover, there is no danger of loss or damage to standards. There is also no need to create copies of standards to ensure their availability in different parts of the world. This eliminates errors associated with the accuracy of making copies of physical objects, and thus provides greater accuracy.

Decimal Prefixes

To form multiple and submultiple units that differ from the base units of the SI system by a certain integer number of times, which is a power of ten, it uses prefixes attached to the name of the base unit. The following is a list of all prefixes currently in use and the decimal factors they stand for:

Console	Symbol	Numerical value; commas here separate groups of digits, and the decimal separator is a period.	Exponential notation
yotta	Y	1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000	10 24
zetta	W	1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000	10 21
exa	E	1 000 000 000 000 000 000	10 18
peta	P	1 000 000 000 000 000	10 15
tera	T	1 000 000 000 000	10 12
giga	G	1 000 000 000	10 9
mega	M	1 000 000	10 6
kilo	to	1 000	10 3
hecto	G	100	10 2
soundboard	Yes	10	10 1
without prefix		1	10 0
deci	d	0,1	10 -1
centi	With	0,01	10 -2
Milli	m	0,001	10 -3
micro	mk	0,000001	10 -6
nano	n	0,000000001	10 -9
pico	P	0,000000000001	10 -12
femto	f	0,000000000000001	10 -15
atto	a	0,000000000000000001	10 -18
zepto	h	0,000000000000000000001	10 -21
yokto	and	0,000000000000000000000001	10 -24

For example, 5 gigameters equals 5,000,000,000 meters, while 3 microcandela equals 0.000003 candela. It is interesting to note that, despite the presence of a prefix in the unit kilogram, it is the base SI unit. Therefore, the above prefixes are used with the gram as if it were the base unit.

At the time of this writing, only three countries remain that have not adopted the SI system: the United States, Liberia, and Myanmar. In Canada and the United Kingdom, traditional units are still widely used, despite the fact that the SI system in these countries is the official system of units. It is enough to go to the store and see the price tags for a pound of goods (it’s cheaper, after all!), Or try to buy building materials measured in meters and kilograms. Will not work! Not to mention the packaging of goods, where everything is signed in grams, kilograms and liters, but not in whole, but translated from pounds, ounces, pints and quarts. Milk space in refrigerators is also calculated per half gallon or gallon, not per liter milk carton.

Do you find it difficult to translate units of measurement from one language to another? Colleagues are ready to help you. Post a question to TCTerms and within a few minutes you will receive an answer.

Calculations for converting units in the converter " Decimal prefix converter' are performed using the functions of unitconversion.org .

Multiple units- units that are an integer number of times greater than the basic unit of measurement of some physical quantity. The International System of Units (SI) recommends the following decimal prefixes for denoting multiple units:

multiplicity	Console		Designation		Example
multiplicity	Russian	international	Russian	international	Example
10 1	soundboard				gave - decalitre
10 2	hecto				hPa - hectopascal
10 3	kilo				kN - kilonewton
10 6	mega				MPa - megapascal
10 9	giga				GHz - gigahertz
10 12	tera				TV - teravolt
10 15	peta				Pflop - petaflop
10 18	exa				EB - exabyte
10 21	zetta				ZeV - zettaelectronvolt
10 24	yotta				IB - yottabyte

Applying decimal prefixes to binary units

Main article: Binary Prefixes

In programming and the computer-related industry, the same prefixes kilo-, mega-, giga-, tera-, etc., when applied to quantities that are multiples of powers of two (e.g., byte), may mean the multiplicity is not 1000, but 1024=2 10 . Which system is used should be clear from the context (for example, for the amount of RAM, the multiplicity of 1024 is used, and for the amount of disk memory, the multiplicity of 1000 is introduced by hard disk manufacturers).

1 kilobyte
1 megabyte			1,048,576 bytes
1 gigabyte			1,073,741,824 bytes
1 terabyte			1,099,511,627,776 bytes
1 petabyte			1 125 899 906 842 624 bytes
1 exabyte			1 152 921 504 606 846 976 bytes
1 zettabyte			1 180 591 620 717 411 303 424 bytes
1 yottabyte			1 208 925 819 614 629 174 706 176 bytes

To avoid confusion in April 1999 International Electrotechnical Commission introduced a new standard for naming binary numbers (see Binary Prefixes).

Prefixes for submultiple units

submultiple units, make up a certain proportion (part) of the established unit of measurement of a certain quantity. The International System of Units (SI) recommends the following prefixes for submultiple units:

Dolnost	Console		Designation		Example
Dolnost	Russian	international	Russian	international	Example
10 −1	deci				dm - decimeter
10 −2	centi				cm - centimeter
10 −3	Milli				mH - millinewton
10 −6	micro				micron - micrometer, micron
10 −9	nano				nm - nanometer
10 −12	pico				pF - picofarad
10 −15	femto				fs - femtosecond
10 −18	atto				ac - attosecond
10 −21	zepto				sCl - zeptocoulomb
10 −24	yokto				ig - yoctogram

Origin of prefixes

Most prefixes are derived from Greek words. Deca comes from the word Deca or deca(δέκα) - "ten", hecto - from hekaton(ἑκατόν) - "hundred", kilo - from chiloi(χίλιοι) - "thousand", mega - from megas(μέγας), i.e. "big", giga is gigantos(γίγας) - "giant", and tera - from teratos(τέρας), meaning "monstrous". Peta (πέντε) and exa (ἕξ) correspond to five and six thousand digits and are translated as "five" and "six" respectively. Dolny micro (from micros, μικρός) and nano (from nanos, νᾶνος) are translated as "small" and "dwarf". From one word ὀκτώ ( okto), meaning "eight", the prefixes yotta (1000 8) and yokto (1/1000 8) are formed.

How "thousand" is translated and the prefix milli, which goes back to lat. mille. Latin roots also have the prefix centi - from percent("hundred") and deci - from decimus("tenth"), zetta - from September("seven"). Zepto ("seven") comes from lat. the words September or from fr. sept.

The prefix atto is formed from dates atten("eighteen"). Femto goes back to dates and Norwegian femten or to other-nor. fimmtan and means fifteen.

The prefix pico comes either from fr. pico("beak" or "small amount"), or from ital. piccolo i.e. "small".

Rules for using prefixes

Prefixes should be written together with the name of the unit or, accordingly, with its designation.

The use of two or more prefixes in a row (eg micromillifarad) is not permitted.

The symbols for multiples and submultiples of the original unit raised to a power are formed by adding the corresponding exponent to the designation of a multiple or submultiple of the original unit, and the exponent means raising the multiple or submultiple to the power (together with the prefix). Example: 1 km² = (10³ m)² = 10 6 m² (not 10³ m²). The names of such units are formed by adding a prefix to the name of the original unit: square kilometer (not kilo-square meter).

If the unit is a product or ratio of units, the prefix, or its designation, is usually attached to the name or designation of the first unit: kPa s / m (kilopascal second per meter). Attaching a prefix to the second factor of the product or to the denominator is allowed only in justified cases.

Applicability of prefixes

Prefixes are used to a limited extent with units of time: multiple prefixes are generally not combined with them - no one uses "kilosecond", although this is not formally prohibited, however, there is an exception to this rule: in cosmology unit is used gigayears» (billion years); dolly prefixes are attached only to second(millisecond, microsecond, etc.). In accordance with GOST 8.417-2002, the name and symbols of the following SI units are not allowed to be used with prefixes: minute, hour, day (time units), degree, minute, second(flat angle units), astronomical unit, diopter and atomic mass unit.

FROM meters of multiple prefixes, in practice only kilo- are used: instead of megameters (Mm), gigameters (Gm), etc., they write “thousands of kilometers”, “millions of kilometers”, etc .; instead of square megameters (Mm²), they write "millions of square kilometers."

Capacity capacitors traditionally measured in microfarads and picofarads, but not millifarads or nanofarads [ source unspecified 221 days ] (they write 60,000 pF, not 60 nF; 2000 uF, not 2 mF). However, in radio engineering, the use of a nanofarad unit is allowed.

Prefixes corresponding to exponents that are not divisible by 3 (hecto-, deca-, deci-, centi-) are not recommended. Widely used only centimeter(which is the basic unit in the system GHS) and decibel, to a lesser extent - decimeter and hectopascal (in meteorological reports), as well as hectare. In some countries the volume guilt measured in decalitres.

1 micro [µ] = 1000 nano [n]

Initial value

Converted value

no prefix yotta zetta exa peta tera giga mega kilo hecto deca deci centi milli micro nano pico femto atto zepto yocto

Wavelength and frequency

Metric system and International System of Units (SI)

Introduction