this post was submitted on 26 Aug 2023
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Showerthoughts

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A metric tonne (1000 kg) should be called a megagram (1 Mg). (lemmy.ca)
submitted 1 year ago by someguy3@lemmy.ca to c/showerthoughts@lemmy.world
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[โ€“] randy@lemmy.ca 9 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I'm an engineer, and I make it a point to teach young engineers that "a ton" can mean any one of three things:

  • Short ton = 2000 lb
  • Long ton = 2240 lb
  • Metric ton = 1000 kg = ~2204 lb

And which is being used is often not spelled out, but is just known from context, and usually should be clarified. I once nearly got in trouble by thinking a measurement was in short tons when it was actually metric tons.

So my own act of rebellion is to use "Mg" when I'm writing my personal notes.

[โ€“] Treczoks@lemm.ee 9 points 1 year ago

There is metric ton and this imperial shit. And thanks to metric being highly systematic, "Mg" (megagrams) is actually correct - "ton" is just a shorthand.