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A system of units of measurement, also known as a system of units or system of measurement, is a collection of units of measurement and rules relating them to each other. Systems of measurement have historically been important, regulated and defined for the purposes of science and commerce .
Conversions between units in the metric system are defined by their prefixes (for example, 1 kilogram = 1000 grams, 1 milligram = 0.001 grams) and are thus not listed in this article. Exceptions are made if the unit is commonly known by another name (for example, 1 micron = 10 −6 metre).
The first group of metric units are those that are at present defined as units within the International System of Units (SI). In its most restrictive interpretation, this is what may be meant when the term metric unit is used. The unit one (1) is the unit of a quantity of dimension one. It is the neutral element of any system of units. [2]
A base unit is a unit adopted for expressing a base quantity. A derived unit is used for expressing any other quantity, and is a product of powers of base units. For example, in the modern metric system, length has the unit metre and time has the unit second, and speed has the derived unit metre per second.
When that multiplier is one, the unit is called a coherent derived unit. For example, the coherent derived SI unit of velocity is the metre per second, with the symbol m/s. [1]: 139 The base and coherent derived units of the SI together form a coherent system of units (the set of coherent SI units). A useful property of a coherent system is ...
In 1824, these units were replaced with a single system based on the imperial gallon. [ a ] Originally defined as the volume of 10 pounds (4.54 kg) of distilled water (under certain conditions), [ b ] then redefined by the Weights and Measures Act 1985 to be exactly 4.546 09 L (277.4 cu in), the imperial gallon is close in size to the old ale ...
The most common units in modern use are the metric units, used in every country globally. In the United States the U.S. customary units are also in use. British Imperial units are still used for some purposes in the United Kingdom and some other countries. The metric system is sub-divided into SI and non-SI units. [1] [2] [3]
The SI system after 1983, but before the 2019 revision: Dependence of base unit definitions on other base units (for example, the metre is defined as the distance travelled by light in a specific fraction of a second), with the constants of nature and artefacts used to define them (such as the mass of the IPK for the kilogram).