# Coolest units of measurement **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 21, 2013, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542 "2013-06-21T06:35:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![sylmar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@sylmar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sylmar)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/101 "2013-06-26T16:25:30Z")
Metes and Bounds, used to measure and describe parcels of land. Can still be found on property deeds that go back a ways in New England, a leftover from Colonial times. " Beginning at a heap os stones and post, set in the road leading from Johnathan Athearns to Edgarton, so called, thence Southerly till it comes to a tree and a heap of stones in the fence of John Williams, thence by the fence of said Williams till it comes to a pair of bars in said fence leading from Watchy Neck to the corners of the land belong inf formerly to John Norton… etc" Apparently a different breed of surveyor back in the day. The guys I’ve known never would have made it past the first bar, much less the pair 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Doubtful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c89c15/32.png) [@Doubtful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doubtful)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/102 "2013-06-26T17:00:09Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > I’ve hear tales about Kudzu. :eek: Or as it is sometimes called, Mile-a-Night. ---
**Author:** ![doverpro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@doverpro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doverpro)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/103 "2013-06-26T17:23:30Z")
**Football field** seems to used a lot as a measurement of both area and length. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/104 "2013-06-26T20:17:06Z")
A New York minute. In use. BTW: It takes one minute of normal NY pedestrian speed to walk one uptown-downtown block, There are 20 blocks to a mile. Useful to know. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/105 "2013-06-26T23:00:18Z")
So, how smart was Einstein measured in “Cecils”, which I just made up? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/106 "2013-06-26T23:19:52Z")
Personally, I’ve wondered for a while just how many miliHelens there are in a B quark. (and no, I will not be having with any of this newfangled “Top” and “Bottom” nonsense) ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/107 "2013-06-27T00:52:57Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Personally, I’ve wondered for a while just how many miliHelens there are in a B quark. > > (and no, I will not be having with any of this newfangled “Top” and “Bottom” nonsense) I dunno, but a B quark with a bit of charm always gives me a hadron. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/108 "2013-06-27T00:59:32Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > So, how smart was Einstein measured in “Cecils”, which I just made up? Surely a more practically useful unit would be the microCecil. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/109 "2013-06-27T01:33:30Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > [Kilonazis](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0489.html)\*: A measurement of evil. > > - Bottom row, middle panel I rather like the “Hitler” as a unit of evil measurement—one Microhitler being equal to six dead people (I, personally, would have calculated it at at least twelve deaths, but perhaps that’s an issue for the BIPM people to decide). it also has a handy [dollars-to-Picohitlers calculator](http://robotsrule.us/picohitlers.html) available, to more precisely calculate how evil an overcharge is. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/110 "2013-06-27T02:21:02Z")
Although, Hitler himself is probably several kilonazis of evil: One assumes that “kilonazis” are based on the average member of the Nazi party, and Hitler was considerably above that average. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/111 "2013-06-27T02:56:48Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > So, how smart was Einstein measured in “Cecils”, which I just made up? It can’t be plural Cecils if the figure is less than one! ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/112 "2013-06-27T05:31:49Z")
Got a few that haven’t been mentioned: The [Miner’s Inch](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miner%27s_inch), really a measure of rate of flow of water, with at least 5 defined values. How long is a [Line](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line_%28unit%29)? 1/12 of an inch (but not a Miner’s Inch). I’ve heard about some rancho legal descriptions giving a boundary distance in ‘smokes’, the distance one might ride a horse while enjoying a cigar, or whatever. And just to push another one along: Rhode Island is 1,214 square miles, including water. San Bernardino County in California is 20,105 square miles - damned little water. One SBC = 16.56 RIs. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/113 "2013-06-27T10:04:12Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > Another one that I’ve often found useful in daily life is the **millihelen** , which is the quantity of beauty needed to launch one ship. You know there are other metric units? I won’t list them all, but: 10 millipedes = 1 centipede ---
**Author:** ![ChukG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@ChukG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChukG)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/114 "2013-06-27T15:36:46Z")
> [@Slypork](#): > > [Banana equivalent dose](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_equivalent_dose) - “additional dose a person will absorb from eating one banana.” Oh great, I was eating a banana when I read that. Now I’m more radioactive. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/115 "2013-06-27T17:17:53Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > [Jiffy (physics).](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiffy_%28time%29#Physics) A jiffy, as defined by Edward R. Harrison, is the time it takes light to travel one fermi (one femtometer), which is about the size of a proton. A somewhat related measure, but more in the vein of engineering than physics. The [shake](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shake_(unit)): approximately 10 nanoseconds. The interval between success generations of neutron-nucleus collisions in a nuclear fission chain reaction. In other words, the time required for a neutron liberated by the fission of one nucleus to cause the fissioning of the next neutron in the chain reaction. Purportedly, from the idiom “two shakes of a lamb’s tail.” Apparently first used in the Manhattan Project. Those whimsical nuclear weapons guys. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/116 "2013-06-27T17:38:31Z")
> [@hotflungwok](#): > > The bogon: a measure bogosity, or how bogus something is. Technically, the [bogon](http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/B/bogon.html) is the elementary particle of bogosity in the field of [quantum bogodynamics](http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/Q/quantum-bogodynamics.html). The [Lenat](http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/M/microLenat.html) is the unit of bogosity in that same discipline. Named for some a [moderately reknowned computer scientist](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Lenat) who offended the coiner of the phrase. By consensus, a full Lenat is too high a quantity to use in any context of bogosity other than describing its namesake, so in most usages bogosity is measured in microLenats. Per the quantum bogodynamics article cited 1 Lenat consists of 1 [mole](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mole_(unit)) of bogons. ---
**Author:** ![Thuringwethil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@Thuringwethil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thuringwethil)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/117 "2013-06-27T18:23:03Z")
No one has mentioned sizes of champagne bottles - ranging from the Piccolo to the Melchizedek with stops at Jennie, Jeroboam, Rehoboam, Methuselah, Mordechai, Salmanazar and Balthazar. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/118 "2013-06-27T21:28:03Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > In Texas, from what I hear, there are \*living rooms \*bigger than Rhode Island. Checking wikipedia, [Rhode Island](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island)= 1,214 sq mi (though [this page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_unusual_units_of_measurement)thinks it is 1,545 sq mi). [Houston, Texas](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston), is 627.8 sq mi, which is just about half of Rhode Island. > [@TriPolar](#): > > We get this all the time from the big states like Texas and Delaware. 😉 > [@CalMeacham](#): > > I’m not wrong – I said “as in”, to ilustrate the use of more than one letter to indicate smallness. The principle at work in that description seems to be in being able to tell the two colors apart. So being able to differentiate red from black is smaller than being red or black. If it is smaller still, you can’t tell if it is red, black, or blonde - that’s very fine. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/119 "2013-06-27T22:14:02Z")
> [@](#): > > The principle at work in that description seems to be in being able to tell the two colors apart. So being able to differentiate red from black is smaller than being red or black. If it is smaller still, you can’t tell if it is red, black, or blonde - that’s very fine. But the principle that is illustrated by the Playboy article I read is completely different – using more letters to indicate finer grade. It seems to resemble the practice of using more letters to indicate better grades of cognac – VS to VSO to VSOP – which I suspect more of the folks who read Playboy would have been familiar with. The idea of fineness going with different colors seems too logical for this sort of usage. ---
**Author:** ![Neverending\_Elbow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e274bd/32.png) [@Neverending\_Elbow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neverending_Elbow)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542/120 "2013-06-27T23:08:26Z")
The [barleycorn](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_units#Length) is one I just like the sound of. If you Brits and Americans ever wondered what unit shoe sizes are measured in. Learned of it on [QI](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HjMRACAG10), I did. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-units-of-measurement/661542.md?page=7)