Abbreviations

Gene,

The abbreviations you provided make the units more clear. These are the abbreviations I have been using for several years.

ABBREVIATION	UNIT OF MEASUREMENT
C               Celsius, Centigrade
cm              centimeter
F., F           Fahrenheit
ft.             foot
in.             inch
K               Kelvin
km              kilometer
m               meter
mi.             mile
mm              millimeter
n.m.            nautical miles
yd.             yard

Thank you. -- Justin

References:

• http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000058.htm
  
• http://www.enchantedlearning.com/abbreviations/
  
• http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/correct.htm
  
• http://www.bipm.org/utils/comm...si_brochure_8_en.pdf
  
• http://grammar.quickanddirtyti...nits-of-measure.aspx
  

Here we thought all those races (5K 10K etc) were referring to distance but they are really named for very cold temperatures!

Bob,

The 5 Kelvin race is held annually on Neptune. I for one don't care what abbreviations Neptunians use.

Thanks for that info, Lyman. It seems that a year on Neptune is worth about 165 of our years-- I think that means it's been about a Neptune year since earthlings discovered Neptune's existence in 1846!
To go back briefly to Gene's original concern, I think this refers to how we list distances on certificates-- but I did take the liberty of advising one of my measurers that "_____ 5 km" would be preferable to "_____ 5km" (as name of course on map). Maybe that is a little hypocritical because we're unlikely to convince race sponsors and organizers to stop using "5K" etc. Any thoughts?

A 5 km is probably best. However when I see 5k that works for me. I have a real problem when one states a 5 km is 3.1 miles or a half is 13.1 miles. Please don't comment on these ideas as they are a different topic.

If one wants to start a topic on the above, please do so.