With all the different units of measure and standards in the world for making measurements, it might be helpful to understand how to convert units of measure yourself. Some conversions are easy, others are more difficult and require the help of a calculator. But the concept is the same, and it is the concept you need to know to solve the problem.
Steps
Step 1. Determine what you want to convert
When converting an amount from one unit of measure to another, you first need a value to convert. In this article we will use the value of 3 meters, and we will convert it to feet.
Step 2. Set up a simple equation
Once you figure out how, you won't need to solve an equation every time you do a conversion, but for now, we'll set up an equation to help you understand how it works and why.
- For this example, we will convert meters to feet.
- 3 meters = X
- This equation has the variable "X" which indicates what we want to find. So what we want to find is the value which equals "X".
Step 3. Find the correct conversion value
For almost if not all unit conversions, the conversion value already exists. So for a conversion from meters to feet we can do an internet search to find the conversion rate.
In this case, 1 meter = 3.2808399 feet, according to Google Calculator
Step 4. Set the conversion rate
To use the conversion rate correctly, we need to change its appearance so we can use it in our equation. In solving an equation, what happens on one side of the equation must also happen on the other, in order to keep both sides the same. If one side is multiplied by 4, the other side must also be multiplied by 4, so they remain the same. In our problem, we don't have to change the "X"; that way, we can multiply both sides by "1", and the "X" won't change. This means that if we can put our conversion rate in the form "1 = something", then we can multiply both sides of the equation by 1, without changing the "X", but changing our value successfully.
- Look at the original equation and determine which unit of measurement needs to be canceled, or go away. Since we want to find the feet, we have to make the meters go away.
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So we can take our conversion rate, and put it into a form that will make the meters go away.
- To make the meters go away, we have to divide by the meters.
- To divide by meters, we need to change the conversion rate so that meters are in the denominator of the new expression we are making.
- If we take our conversion rate 1 meter = 3.2808399 feet, and divide both sides by the meter value, the value on the left side of the equation becomes "1" with no unit of measurement, and the value on the right becomes 3.2808399 / 1 feet / meters.
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We now have a new equation which asserts that 1 = 3.2808399 feet / meters.
The right side of the equation loses "divided by 1 (/ 1)" because each value divided by 1 is equal to itself. Basically, 4 = 4/1
Step 5. Multiply both sides of the original equation by "1"
So our equation will now be:
- 3 meters * 1 = X * 1
- Since we know that 1 = 3.2808399 feet / meters, we can substitute the "1" on the left side of the equation so we can convert the value. Do not substitute the "1" on the right side of the equation, as the "X" must remain the same.
- The equation will now be: 3 meters * 3.2808399 feet / meters = X * 1
Step 6. Simplify the equation to solve it more easily
Thanks to simplification, we can look at the new form the equation takes and solve it more easily.
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Get rid of "X * 1" on the right side, as we know it is equal to "X".
3 meters * 3.2808399 feet / meters = X
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Calculate 3 * 3.2808399 and substitute it in the right side of the equation, and combine the units by multiplying and dividing them as you would normal numbers.
9.8425197 (meters * feet) / meters = X
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Since in the expression (meters * feet) / meters, we are multiplying and dividing by meters, they cancel each other out leaving us with only our feet.
9.8425197 feet = X
Step 7. Replace this new value of "X" with the old value of "X"
According to the transitive property of multiplications, if 9.8425197 feet = X, and 3 meters = X, then 9.8425197 feet = 3 meters, or 3 meters = 9.8425197 feet.
