Units—Bits of Something Bigger.

What are the units? A student asked during a lecture. The professor took the question without any hesitation and carefully explained the units and their derivation while relating these back to the phenomena being discussed. This occurred multiple times establishing a predictable pattern week after week as the lectures progressed.

To my astonishment, every time, the professor would provide the units in multiple systems of measure with such ease, as if these were a date of birth, phone number, or an address.?

Very soon, the realization came that the more complex the concept, the more rigorous the explanations on the units. These, without a doubt, fundamentally gave meaning to it all. It is no surprise that metrology is a science with a very complex history.? Units permeate our lives and make sense out of the observable world. Quantification without these is pointless.

Next time you simply say: See you in 5!! You may have just missed the opportunity to give a clear and concise meaning of time.