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About these units
Decimeter (dm)
The decimeter, equal to one-tenth of a meter, is a metric unit that sees intermittent use, largely because centimeters and meters are more common in everyday measurements. Nevertheless, the decimeter is valuable in contexts that require moderate precision without resorting to large decimal numbers—for example, in hydrology, where water depths or precipitation levels may be expressed in decimeters to simplify statistical modeling. Rare in general conversation, the decimeter appears more frequently in scientific literature and educational settings. Physical scientists sometimes use decimeters when working with volumes measured in cubic decimeters, which correspond exactly to liters. The existence of the decimeter demonstrates the metric system's scalable format, even when a specific unit is overshadowed by its neighbors.
Angstrom (Å)
The ångström, equal to 10⁻¹⁰ meters, is traditionally used to measure atomic scales, bond lengths, and wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, particularly in the X-ray and ultraviolet regions. Although not an SI unit, the ångström persists because it aligns conveniently with many natural atomic dimensions — hydrogen's typical bond lengths, for example, are close to 1 Å. Scientists in crystallography, astronomy, materials science, and spectroscopy routinely use ångströms when describing the spacing between atoms in a crystal lattice or the wavelength of certain spectral lines. The convenience comes from avoiding unwieldy decimals: instead of writing 0.154 nm, one may write 1.54 Å. While modern research increasingly prefers SI nanometers or picometers, the ångström remains deeply embedded in scientific traditions and continues to serve as a practical shorthand for atomic-scale measurements.