English/metric measurement error in the Mars Climate Orbiter

[mklotz]

Apart from the decimal nature of the ISO metric system the thing that I like the best is the consistency of the units. If you forget what certain derived units are you only have to use the base units of kg, m and sec to get reminded.

What is a newton - we know it is a force and as F=ma a N must be kg.m/sec^2
What is a joule - it is work so it has to be force x distance which is Nm. So 1 joule = 1 Nm
What is a watt - it is power so it has to be work/time which is joule/sec or Nm/sec So 1 watt = 1 joule/sec = 1 Nm/sec
What is a pascal - it is pressure so it has to be force/area which is N/m^2 So 1 pascal = 1 N/m^2

That is as simple as it gets. This consistency of the units reduces the chance of errors greatly.

While the inferial system has such idiocies as "fluid-ounce" which is a measure of volume, not weight.

Do not just think of the ISO metric system as being only a decimal system, it goes much further than that.

For more on that, folks can visit my essay...

http://www.homemadetools.net/forum/g...1486#post93973