3 Learn the Basic Units of Weight (Mass) In the metric system, the basic unit of mass is the gram. Mass is commonly referred to as weight, but they are two different things. The mass of an object is the amount of matter in the object. The weight of an object is a measure of the force of gravity on an object. The farther we get from the center of the Earth, the less the pull of gravity. Therefore, an object on the surface of the Earth weighs more than if the object is far from the Earth. An astronaut, for example, is weightless in space but his or her mass is the same whether on Earth or in space. In science classes, especially physics, it is important to understand the difference between mass and weight. If an object is on the Earth, the weight and mass of that object are the same. Therefore, we will use the word weight. The abbreviation for gram is g. The gram is related to the metric length. If each side of a box has a length of 1 cm, and we fi ll this tiny box with water, the weight of the water in the box is 1 gram. The weight of the water in this box is exactly 1 gram. 1 cm 1 cm Here are some examples that will help you understand the measure of grams. 1 cm A large paper clip A nickel weighs 5 g. The iPhone 4S weighs 140 g. weighs about 1 g. (www.apple.com) ppinoppinoppin ppin rintrint PrintPrint Favorite RSS Home nloa wnloa Pod I I Organiser Contact Community 8:42 AM 8:Chat Time Print Video Massage Camera Gaming Shopping Download ComComComCom To describe larger and smaller units of weight (mass), use the same prefi xes that are used for length and capacity. For example, 1 kilometer (km) 1000 meters (m), 1 kiloliter (kL) 1000 liters (L), and 1 kilogram (kg) 1000 grams (g). Kilo means 1000. Here are other units of weight. Metric Units of Weight 1 kilogram (kg) 1000 g 1 hectogram (hg) 100 g 1 dekagram (dag) 10 g 1 gram (g) 1 g 1 decigram (dg) 1 10 g or 0.1 g 1 centigram (cg) 1 100 g or 0.01 g 1 milligram (mg) 1 1000 g or 0.001 g Note The units used most often are kilogram, gram, and milligram. www.mhhe.com/messersmith SECTION 7.3 The Metric System: Capacity and Weight (Mass) 459
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