u/lpetrich

▲ 9 r/Metric

Non-SI Units of the Very Small: Molecules, Atoms, Nuclei, Particles

Turning to the very small, we find non-SI units there also.

The angstrom (Å, A circle) is 10^(-10) m = 0.1 nm, and most elements' atoms have radii within a factor of 2 of an angstrom.

The fermi (fm) is 10^(-15) m, a femtometer, so "fermi" is another name for a SI unit, like "metric ton" or "tonne" for a megagram. It's around the radius of a nucleon; a proton and a neutron.

The barn is 10^(-28) m^2 or 100 fm^2. Reaction cross sections are often expressed in barns, often with SI prefixes.

The atomic mass unit or dalton (Da) is roughly the average mass per nucleon of light elements' atoms, like carbon or oxygen. It is currently defined as 1/12 the mass of a carbon-12 atom. "Dalton" is often given SI prefixes, and masses of biomolecules, like proteins and nucleic acids (DNA, RNA), are often reported in kilodaltons (kDa) or megadaltons (MDa).

The electron volt (eV) is the energy that an electron will gain when dropping through an electric-potential difference of 1 volt. It's not just an electron; it's anything with elementary charge 1, like a proton.

It is often given SI prefixes, and it is often used in atomic, nuclear, and particle physics. With the help of Einstein's famous equation, it is also used as a mass unit. Electrons have mass 511 kiloelectron volts (keV), protons have mass 938.3 megaelectron volts (MeV), (neutrons 939.6 MeV, dalton 931.5 MeV), top quarks have mass 173 gigaelectron volts (GeV), and the Large Hadron Collider can accelerate protons to energies around 6.8 teraelectron volts (TeV).

I am following the usual custom of omitting the Einstein mass-energy factor, (1/c^2).

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u/lpetrich — 10 days ago
▲ 12 r/EndFPTP

UK: Single Transferable Vote for English and Welsh Local Councils?

One of the United Kingdom's four countries, Scotland, has single transferable vote in its local councils: Single Transferable Vote (STV) – The City of Edinburgh Council

According to Single transferable vote - Wikipedia this dates back to 2007. Northern Ireland's local councils also use STV, along with NI's Parliament.

Local councils in the remaining two countries, England and Wales, continue to use FPTP, however, and Why we need to change the way we elect our councillors in England and Wales – Electoral Reform Society – ERS proposes changing that to STV.

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u/lpetrich — 13 days ago
▲ 1 r/Metric

Astronomers' Non-SI Units

Astronomers continue to use several non-SI units, though they have decided on SI values for nominal values of these units.

Sources:

Units:

  • Angle:
    • degree = (pi/180) radians
    • arcminute = (1/60) degrees
    • arcsecond = (1/60) arcminutes
  • Time:
    • minute = 60 SI second
    • hour = 60 minutes
    • day = 24 hours (~ Earth solar day)
    • year = 365.25 days (Julian year, ~ Earth year)
  • Distance:
    • astronomical unit (AU) = 149597870700 meters (~ Earth-Sun distance)
    • parsec (parallax second: pc) = (astronomical unit) / (arcsecond/radian)
  • Sun:
    • radius = 6.957*10^8 m
    • light flux at 1 AU = 1361 W/m^2
    • luminosity = 3.828*10^(26) W
    • temperature = 5770 K
    • G*mass = 1.3271244*10^(20) m^3/s^2
  • Earth:
    • equatorial radius = 6.3781*10^6 m
    • polar radius = 6.3568*10^6 m
    • G*mass = 3.986004*10^(14) m^3/s^2
  • Jupiter:
    • equatorial radius = 7.1492*10^7 m
    • polar radius = 6.6854*10^7 m
    • G*mass = 1.2668653*10^(17) m^3/s^2

The G in these definitions is the Newtonian gravitational constant. It is combined with the masses because this combination is sometimes measured to much greater accuracy than G itself.

Also, of planet radii, the equatorial radius is used unless specified otherwise.

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u/lpetrich — 14 days ago

Between facets and domains: 10 aspects of the Big Five (2007) with a PDF copy on coauthor Jordan Peterson's page

The ten aspects, two for each factor, were found using principal components analysis on personality facets. Most facets had the highest loadings on their expected factors, and the exceptions had second highest loadings on these factors.

Each factor has two aspects:

  • Openness/Intellect: Openness, Intellect
  • Extraversion: Assertiveness, Enthusiasm
  • Conscientiousness: Industriousness, Orderliness
  • Agreeableness: Compassion, Politeness
  • Neuroticism: Volatility, Withdrawal

For each factor, its aspects have significant correlation, and its facets usually have significant loadings on at least one aspect.

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u/lpetrich — 23 days ago