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See Also
See Again
© Shutterstock
0 / 27 Fotos
Beard-second - A beard-second is the length an average beard grows in one second, which is 100 angstroms (10 nanometers). The measurement is used for integrated circuits.
© Shutterstock
1 / 27 Fotos
Foe - This unit of measurement is used for large amounts of energy released from a supernova.
© Shutterstock
2 / 27 Fotos
Banana equivalent dose - Bananas contain some nominal amounts of radiation and a banana equivalent dose is the amount of radiation one gets by eating a banana—which is quite small, so don't panic.
© Shutterstock
3 / 27 Fotos
Donkey Power - Donkey Power is equal to one-third of horsepower, and is used to measure low-intensity machines.
© Shutterstock
4 / 27 Fotos
Butt - Not just a body part, a butt was also once used in the imperial system to refer to 108 gallons (490 l) of ale or 126 gallons (570 l) of wine.
© Shutterstock
5 / 27 Fotos
Nibble - When measuring computing information, a nibble is four bits or half of a byte. A bit is either a 1 or a 0, and equates to "yes or no" or "true or false." A byte is what goes into one character of text in a computer.
© Shutterstock
6 / 27 Fotos
Hand - A hand is an incredibly old unit of measurement, sometimes used to measure the height of horses, that has now been standardized to mean 4 inches (10.16 cm).
© Shutterstock
7 / 27 Fotos
Jiffy - How long does it take for light to travel one centimeter (0.3937 inches)? It takes one jiffy, or around 33.3564 picoseconds.
© Shutterstock
8 / 27 Fotos
Mother Cow Index - Once used in the US southwest in real estate, the Mother Cow Index was how many pregnant cows a given piece of land could support.
© Shutterstock
9 / 27 Fotos
Hobbit - Once used in Wales, UK, a hobbit of oats weighed 105 lbs (47 kg), a hobbit of barley was 147 lbs (66 kg), and a hobbit of wheat was 168 lbs (76 kg).
© Shutterstock
10 / 27 Fotos
Ton of refrigeration - A ton of refigeration is how much heat extraction it would take to freeze 2,000 lb (907 kg) of ice. It's used to measure air conditioning and heating usage.
© Shutterstock
11 / 27 Fotos
Wiffle - A wiffle is a sphere that's 3.5 inches (89 millimeters) in diameter, like the Wiffle ball, and is used to measure coral reefs.
© Shutterstock
12 / 27 Fotos
Candy - A candy was used in 17th-century southern India to refer to 500 lbs (227 kg).
© Shutterstock
13 / 27 Fotos
Barn - A barn is used in nuclear physics to measure the cross-sectional area of a uranium nucleus. Untreated uranium is pictured here.
© Shutterstock
14 / 27 Fotos
Shake - In nuclear physics a shake is 10 nanoseconds, and is used to denote the different phases of a nuclear explosion.
© Shutterstock
15 / 27 Fotos
Erlang - One telephone cord circuit can be used for one hour, and that capacity is measured as one erlang.
© Shutterstock
16 / 27 Fotos
Cow's Grass - Prior to the 19th century in Ireland, the measurement of cow's grass was used to measure how much land was needed for one cow to graze on.
© Shutterstock
17 / 27 Fotos
Brass - A brass is 100 sq ft (9.29 sq m) and is used in plastering and painting.
© Shutterstock
18 / 27 Fotos
Pony - A pony is a small shot of liquor measuring 0.68–1.01 oz (20–30 ml). But a shot varies depending on where you go.
© Shutterstock
19 / 27 Fotos
Coomb - A coomb was four bushels (140 liters) in 13th-century England, and was used to measure farm yields.
© Shutterstock
20 / 27 Fotos
Hoppus Foot - The hoppus cubic foot was used in the old British Empire to measure lumber, and was later replaced by the metric system.
© Shutterstock
21 / 27 Fotos
Oxgang - Formerly used in 16th-century Scotland and England, oxgang denoted between 15 and 20 acres (6 to 8 hectares).
© Shutterstock
22 / 27 Fotos
Peck - A peck was a method of measuring produce, and equal to two dry gallons (8.81 liters). Though the measurement has largely fallen out of use, some apples are still measured in pecks.
© Shutterstock
23 / 27 Fotos
Savart - A savart measures a pitch interval in music and is equal to three octaves and a just major third. It has been replaced by what is called a cent.
© Shutterstock
24 / 27 Fotos
Sydney Harbour - One Sydney Harbour, also called a Sydharb, and represents 500 gigalitres (200,000 Olympic swimming pools), which is the amount of water in Sydney Harbour.
© Shutterstock
25 / 27 Fotos
Furman - A furman is 1/65,536 of a circle, and is used in machinery control to calculate circular movements.
© Shutterstock
26 / 27 Fotos
© Shutterstock
0 / 27 Fotos
Beard-second - A beard-second is the length an average beard grows in one second, which is 100 angstroms (10 nanometers). The measurement is used for integrated circuits.
© Shutterstock
1 / 27 Fotos
Foe - This unit of measurement is used for large amounts of energy released from a supernova.
© Shutterstock
2 / 27 Fotos
Banana equivalent dose - Bananas contain some nominal amounts of radiation and a banana equivalent dose is the amount of radiation one gets by eating a banana—which is quite small, so don't panic.
© Shutterstock
3 / 27 Fotos
Donkey Power - Donkey Power is equal to one-third of horsepower, and is used to measure low-intensity machines.
© Shutterstock
4 / 27 Fotos
Butt - Not just a body part, a butt was also once used in the imperial system to refer to 108 gallons (490 l) of ale or 126 gallons (570 l) of wine.
© Shutterstock
5 / 27 Fotos
Nibble - When measuring computing information, a nibble is four bits or half of a byte. A bit is either a 1 or a 0, and equates to "yes or no" or "true or false." A byte is what goes into one character of text in a computer.
© Shutterstock
6 / 27 Fotos
Hand - A hand is an incredibly old unit of measurement, sometimes used to measure the height of horses, that has now been standardized to mean 4 inches (10.16 cm).
© Shutterstock
7 / 27 Fotos
Jiffy - How long does it take for light to travel one centimeter (0.3937 inches)? It takes one jiffy, or around 33.3564 picoseconds.
© Shutterstock
8 / 27 Fotos
Mother Cow Index - Once used in the US southwest in real estate, the Mother Cow Index was how many pregnant cows a given piece of land could support.
© Shutterstock
9 / 27 Fotos
Hobbit - Once used in Wales, UK, a hobbit of oats weighed 105 lbs (47 kg), a hobbit of barley was 147 lbs (66 kg), and a hobbit of wheat was 168 lbs (76 kg).
© Shutterstock
10 / 27 Fotos
Ton of refrigeration - A ton of refigeration is how much heat extraction it would take to freeze 2,000 lb (907 kg) of ice. It's used to measure air conditioning and heating usage.
© Shutterstock
11 / 27 Fotos
Wiffle - A wiffle is a sphere that's 3.5 inches (89 millimeters) in diameter, like the Wiffle ball, and is used to measure coral reefs.
© Shutterstock
12 / 27 Fotos
Candy - A candy was used in 17th-century southern India to refer to 500 lbs (227 kg).
© Shutterstock
13 / 27 Fotos
Barn - A barn is used in nuclear physics to measure the cross-sectional area of a uranium nucleus. Untreated uranium is pictured here.
© Shutterstock
14 / 27 Fotos
Shake - In nuclear physics a shake is 10 nanoseconds, and is used to denote the different phases of a nuclear explosion.
© Shutterstock
15 / 27 Fotos
Erlang - One telephone cord circuit can be used for one hour, and that capacity is measured as one erlang.
© Shutterstock
16 / 27 Fotos
Cow's Grass - Prior to the 19th century in Ireland, the measurement of cow's grass was used to measure how much land was needed for one cow to graze on.
© Shutterstock
17 / 27 Fotos
Brass - A brass is 100 sq ft (9.29 sq m) and is used in plastering and painting.
© Shutterstock
18 / 27 Fotos
Pony - A pony is a small shot of liquor measuring 0.68–1.01 oz (20–30 ml). But a shot varies depending on where you go.
© Shutterstock
19 / 27 Fotos
Coomb - A coomb was four bushels (140 liters) in 13th-century England, and was used to measure farm yields.
© Shutterstock
20 / 27 Fotos
Hoppus Foot - The hoppus cubic foot was used in the old British Empire to measure lumber, and was later replaced by the metric system.
© Shutterstock
21 / 27 Fotos
Oxgang - Formerly used in 16th-century Scotland and England, oxgang denoted between 15 and 20 acres (6 to 8 hectares).
© Shutterstock
22 / 27 Fotos
Peck - A peck was a method of measuring produce, and equal to two dry gallons (8.81 liters). Though the measurement has largely fallen out of use, some apples are still measured in pecks.
© Shutterstock
23 / 27 Fotos
Savart - A savart measures a pitch interval in music and is equal to three octaves and a just major third. It has been replaced by what is called a cent.
© Shutterstock
24 / 27 Fotos
Sydney Harbour - One Sydney Harbour, also called a Sydharb, and represents 500 gigalitres (200,000 Olympic swimming pools), which is the amount of water in Sydney Harbour.
© Shutterstock
25 / 27 Fotos
Furman - A furman is 1/65,536 of a circle, and is used in machinery control to calculate circular movements.
© Shutterstock
26 / 27 Fotos
Weirdest units of measurement that are actually real
How much Donkey Power under your hood?
© Shutterstock
There are a million ways to measure a great number of highly specific phenomenon, and some of them are quite unique.
A lot of measurements get their names from everyday items, making them even more baffling and hilarious.
Here are the weirdest measurements people actually use.
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