Definition of Measurement – What it is, Meaning and Concept

A measurement is he result of the action of measuring. This verb, originating from the Latin term metiri, It refers to the comparison that is established between a certain amount and its corresponding Unit to determine how many times that unit is contained in the quantity in question.

For example: “According to the last measurement, the pine that is next to the lake already measures more than thirty meters”, “Before buying the chair, we have to measure the available space”, “The final of the tournament was followed by TV by more than twenty million viewers, according to a measurement by the organizers”.

Measurement, in short, consists of determining what proportion exists between a dimension of some object and a certain unit of measure. For this to be possible, the size of the measurement and the chosen unit have to share the same magnitude.

The unit of measurement, on the other hand, is the Pattern used to specify the measurement. It is essential that you meet three conditions: inalterability (the unit should not change over time or according to the subject carrying out the measurement), the universality (must be able to be used in any country) and the ease of reproduction. It should be noted that it is very difficult to make an exact measurement, as the instruments used may have flaws or mistakes may be made during the task.

In music, the term “A 440” or “concert tone” is often repeated. This represents the standardization of the amount of vibrations per second that a certain note has, the central A of the piano, and allows a coherence in the tuning of all the instruments. The unit used is Hz and for the measurement a tuning fork is usually used, an inseparable companion of opera singers and choreographers.

Earthquake measurement

Countries like Japan, where earthquakes occur every year, spend millions on improving detection techniques. earthquakes. Since there is no way to stop them, the only hope of those who suffer them is anticipate tremors with enough time for the inevitable evacuation. The measurable aspects of an earthquake are its magnitude and intensity, for which various scales are used. The best known are Richter’s, which focuses on the cause, and Mercalli’s, which looks at the effect.

The scale of Richter or local magnitude, allows to know the energy released at the focus of the earthquake, the place where the fracture of the rocks originates and is then spread through the seismic waves. His calculation It is based on a logarithmic expression that offers values ​​that are increasing in such a way that each unit represents a magnitude 10 times stronger than the previous one. The highest grade ever recorded belongs to an earthquake that occurred in Chile in 1960, with a value of 9.5 Richter.

Although the magnitude has a unique value, the intensity it varies along the diameter of the earthquake. The Mercalli scale is used for this measurement, and its application varies according to the severity of the earthquake. Basically, the effects are observed at a certain place on the earth’s surface and assigned a grade ranging from I to XII, in Roman numerals. The perception of the intensity of an earthquake is personal and It varies according to where the person is at the time of the appraisal, the height, the type of building and soil, among other aspects. Thanks to this measurement, it is possible to improve the protection strategies of citizens against this type of catastrophe.