Now playing video 1 of 8
How long is a piece of string?
Description
Alan Davies and Marcus Du Sautoy get to grips with the problem of measuring the exact length of a piece of string. They visit the National Physics Laboratory, look at how a metre is defined now, and explore the history of measurement and standardisation along the way.
Classroom Ideas
This is good enrichment on the problem of measurement and bounds of measures. Students could try measuring their own pieces of string in different ways and with different units and compare their results. Use different scales of map to measure similar features and see if different levels of detail produce different results. Consider the history of measurement and the development of standard measures.
Numeracy
Now playing video 1 of 8
