how is using a conversion factor different from using proportions to convert measurement units? Explain which is easier and why.
A conversion factor is a simplified ratio between two measurements.The conversion is not is easier to use because you do not get to break it down and use multiple steps to solve instead of solving it all together
How is using a conversion factor different from using proportions to convert measurement units? Explain which is easier and why. A conversion factor is a factor that changes from one unit of measure to another when the rate is equal to one. An example would be 1 cup= 8 ounces. This conversion factor allows you to convert cups to ounces or from ounces to cups. Using proportions is an equation which states that two ratios are equal. With proportions you can test it with cross products of the portions which in some cases may seem easier and simpler. In my opinion I like using conversion factors and find it to be somewhat more interesting. When I am baking or doing simple math conversions I compare the ratios to find the measurement that I need.
This is a good example that you can use.
Don't copy and paste ;)
w0w
A conversion factor allows you to convert from one unit of measurement to another as long as they are the same kind of quantity. For example, you can convert between inches, feet, mm, or miles because they are all length, but you cannot convert between inches and pounds because inches is a length and pounds is a weight. A conversion factor is always equal to one. For example 12 inch = 1foot. You could use the conversion factor of 12inch/1foot or 1 foot/12 inches. Since the numerator and denominator are the same, the conversion factor is equal to one. So if you want to convert 16 inches to feet, you would multiply 16 inches by the conversion factor (1 foot/12 inches).
A proportion states that two ratios are equal. The proportion 1/3 = 2/6 states that the ratio 1/3 is equal to the ratio 2/6. We often use ratios in a similar way that we use conversion factors – but it is important to note that the ratios do NOT have to equal one (as they do in conversion factors). For example, we could say that every car has 4 wheels. So we could use the ratio of 4 wheels/1 car or 1 car/4 wheels. So if we wanted to know how many wheels 25 cars had we could set up the proportion:
4 wheels/1 car = x wheels/25 cars and solve for x = 100, so that your proportion would be 4 wheels/1 car = 100 wheels/25 cars. Note that you are not converting the unit of cars to the unit of wheels, you are just saying that the ratio of wheels to cars is 4 wheels/1 car.
Relating this to CHEMISTRY: You can use the CONVERSION FACTOR: 1 mole of Carbon/6.022x10^23 atoms of Carbon because the numerator and denominator are equal and the quantity you are measuring is the same – moles and atoms both describe the number of particles. But if you want to find out how many hydrogen atoms are in one mole of water molecules, you would use the RATIO of 1 mole H2Omolecules/2 moles hydrogen atoms (or 2 moles hydrogen atoms/1 mole H2O molecules)….because H2O molecules and hydrogen atoms are not the same kind of quantity. This second example uses a ratio and NOT a conversion factor – but when you write it out on paper, they both look the same.
In short, the math looks the same whether you use conversion ratios or proportions or ratios, but for it to be a conversion factor, the numerator and denominator MUST be equal as in 60 seconds = 1 minute or 12 inches = 1 foot.