EXPERIMENT NO.

1
MEASUREMENT AND CONVERSION USING BODY PARTS

I. Introduction
Physics is one of the most fundamental sciences. It is also the foundation of all
engineering and technology. It is concerned with the description and understanding of nature.
Physics is an experimental science and the fundamental laws used in developing theories are
expressed in the language of mathematics. Experiments in Physics require measurements.

Measurement is one of the most important tools in Physics. Ancient measurements,

especially length, were based on the human body. Examples are the span of a hand, length of
arms, and the breadth of the thumb. Numbers were generally used to describe the results of
measurement and it is expressed in unit values, or units. A meter is a unit of distance, and the
second is a unit of time. When we use a number to describe a physical quantity, we must
always specify the unit that we are using.

An accurate, reliable measurement should not change and that can be duplicated by
observers in various locations. A standard unit is an officially accepted unit and there are two
major systems of units in use today, the metric system (mks) and the British system (fps).
Different units in the same system or units from different systems can be used to describe the
same thing. It is always possible to convert from one unit to another.

In this laboratory activity, you will be using your body parts as an alternative length
measuring device.

II. Objectives:
At the end of the home experiment, you should be able to:
1. formulate scale using body parts;
2. convert one unit to another using the formulated scale;
3. compare the body parts and actual measurements, and;
4. verify conversion factor of a metric to a British system.

III. Materials:
Ruler Recording Notebook

IV. Procedure:
Note: Make sure you have a ruler and take a picture of all the activities that you will do.
Part 1: Measuring using a dangkal.
1. Measure the span of your dangkal using a ruler in the metric (cm) and British (inches)
systems. Record your readings. This will be your scale for one dangkal.
2. Measure the length and width of your dining table using dangkal. Record in Table 1.
3. Determine the dimensions and area of the table using the scale derived in Step 1, both
in the metric and British system.
4. Compute the ratio of Metric Reading to British Reading.
Part 2: Measuring using a dapan (foot).
1. Measure the length of your foot (dapan) using a ruler in metric (cm) and British (inches)
systems. Record your readings. This will be your scale for one dapan.
2. Measure the length and width of your living room using your foot. Record in Table 2.
3. Determine the dimensions and area of your living room using the scale derived in Step
1, both in metric and British systems.
4. Compute the ratio of Metric Reading to British Reading.

Part 3: Measuring using a dipa

1. Measure the length of one dipa using a ruler in the metric (cm) and British (inches)
systems. Record your readings. This will be your scale for one dipa.
2. Measure the length and width of your bedroom based on its walls using the dipa.
Record in Table 3.
3. Determine the dimensions and area of your bedroom using the scale derived in Step 1,
both in metric and British systems.
4. Compute the ratio of Metric Reading to British Reading.

Part 4. Graph.
1. Make a graph of Metric Reading (y-axis) vs British Reading (x-axis) of the length and
width of all the measured parts of the house.
2. Compute the slope of your graph. It will be your experimental value.
3. Compute the percent error in your experiment using the equation:
Experimental−Theoretical
Percent of Error=¿ ∨×100 %
Theoretical

Theoretical Value of cm/in: 2.54

Name: ___________________________________________________ Score: _______________
Course and Year: __________________________________________ Date: ________________

EXPERIMENT NO. 1
Data Sheet

Table 1: Measuring using a dangkal.

Scale: 1 dangkal = ______20.5______ cm 1 dangkal = _______8______ inches
Metric British Metric/ British
Dimension # of Dangkal
Conversion Conversion Ratio
1.4 x 20.5 cm 1.4 x 8 inches 28.7 cm / 11.2
Length 1.4 =28.7 cm =11.2 inches in
=2.5625
1.2 x 20.5 cm 1.2 x 8 inches =24.6 cm/9.6 in
Width 1.2 =24.6 cm =9.6 inches =2.5625

=1.4 x 1.2
Area =1.68

Note: Measured ref.

Table 2: Measuring using a dapan.

Scale: 1 dapan = __________________ cm 1 dapan = ________________ inches
Metric British Metric/ British
Dimension # of dapan
Conversion Conversion Ratio

Length

Width

Area
 Table 3: Measuring using a dipa.
Scale: 1 dipa = __________________ cm 1 dipa = ________________ inches
Metric British Metric/ British
Dimension # of dipa
Conversion Conversion Ratio

Length

Width

Area

Graph and Computation:

Table 4: Summary of Measurements
Using Dangkal Using Dapan Using Dipa
Length Width Length Width Length Width
Metric 28.7 cm 24.6 cm
Reading
British 11.2 9.6 inches
Reading inches

Chart Title
30

29

28

27

26

25

24

23

22
9.4 9.6 9.8 10 10.2 10.4 10.6 10.8 11 11.2 11.4
Guide Questions:
1. Which body parts in the experiment is the most accurate to use in measurement? Why?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Give one (1) advantage and disadvantage of using body parts as a measuring tool.
Advantage:_______________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Disadvantage:____________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. Cite three (3) daily activities that use body parts as measuring tools.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
4. What is the importance of scaling?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
5. Differentiate accuracy and efficiency.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

Conclusion:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Documentation