Who is asking: Parent
Level: Secondary
Question:
I know there is an equation to figuring out, for example. .5526 km = _______ mm
I know it can be set up something like:
5525km x _#####___mm
________
1 ##### km
I know you can set this problem up in fraction form like figuring ratios, but I can't remember how. Any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Donna,
The key to converting metric units is to know the meaning of the prefixes. The meanings can be found in the answer to a previous question. The most commonly used prefixes are
• centi designates one hundredth, like a cent
• milli designates one thousandth
• kilo designates 1000.
Thus a centimeter is one hundredth of a meter, a milliliter is one thousandth of a liter and a kilogram is one thousand grams.
Thus 0.5526 kilometers is 552.6 meters which is 552600 millimeters.
Penny
