Originally Posted By: TheFallibleFiend
As you have pointed out previously, this equality can't be an equality, because it has different units on each side. That is, it fails the test
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Wolfram says you're right. Every other scientist, engineer, and mathematician on the planet says you're right.


Yea trouble is those arguments are too easy to persuade Paul! And in fact they don't necessarily apply if he has a consistent system. Our way of using units happens to be all nice and beautiful and works perfectly, but that doesn't mean some other system (Paul's) won't work.

I just don't quite understand the rules. If they were clearer then it would be easy to look for internal inconsistencies to disprove it without invoking "the way everybody else does it". The "equals sign means equal" doesn't really work unless you already assume a meaning for "Ns" It doesn't mean "newtons times seconds" in Paul's system because you're don't multiply units there.

There are other systems in common use. For example this formula for hull speed of a boat:

velocity in knots=1.35 x sqrt(waterline length)

That clearly fails dimensional analysis, but it will still be correct using a different convention.

Last edited by kallog; 10/06/11 02:53 PM.