Page 24 - Schaum's Outline of Theory and Problems of Applied Physics

CHAP. 1] USEFUL MATH 9

Table 1-1

Prefix Power Abbreviation Pronunciation Example

pico- 10 −12 p PEE · koh 1pf = 1 picofarad = 10 −12 farad
nano- 10 −9 n NAN · oh 1ns = 1 nanosecond = 10 −9 second
micro- 10 −6 µ MY · crow 1 µA = 1 microampere = 10 −6 ampere
milli- 10 −3 m MILL · ee 1mH = 1 millihenry = 10 −3 henry
centi- 10 −2 c SEN · tee 1cm = 1 centimeter = 10 −2 meter
2
hecto- 10 2 h HEK · toe 1hL = 1 hectoliter = 10 liters
3
kilo- 10 3 k KILL · oh 1kg = 1 kilogram = 10 grams
6
mega- 10 6 M MEG · ah 1MW = 1 megawatt = 10 watts
9
giga- 10 9 G GEE · gah 1 GeV = 1 gigaelectronvolt = 10 electronvolts
12
tera- 10 12 T TER · ah 1TJ = 1 terajoule = 10 joules

SOLVED PROBLEM 1.21
Rome is 1440 km by road from Paris. How far is this in miles?

Since 1 km = 0.621 mi,

mi
1440 km = (1440 km) 0.621 = 894 mi

km
SOLVED PROBLEM 1.22
A man is 6 ft 2 in. tall. How many centimeters is this?
Since 1 ft = 12 in. and 1 in. = 2.54 cm,

cm
6ft2in. = [(6)(12) + 2] in. = (74 in.) 2.54 = 188 cm
in.
SOLVED PROBLEM 1.23
2
How many square feet are there in 1 m ?
Since 1 m = 3.28 ft,
2
ft ft
2
2
2
2
1m = (1m ) 3.28 = (1 ) 10.76 = 10.76 ft 2
m

m m 2
SOLVED PROBLEM 1.24
Express a velocity of 60 mi/h in feet per second.
There are 5280 ft in 1 mi and 3600 s in 1 h, so

mi mi ft 1 ft
60 = 60 5280 = 88

h h mi 3600 s/h s

SOLVED PROBLEM 1.25
The unit of electric charge, symbol Q, is the coulomb (abbreviated C); the unit of voltage, symbol V, is
the volt (V); and the unit of capacitance, symbol C, is the farad (F). When the voltage across a capacitor