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Length/Distance | Convert from city block [South, West U.S.] to smoot |
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Common Length Conversions Metric Length Conversions Unit Definition (city block [South, West U.S.]) The south west city block is an informal unit of distance popular in the U.S. A block is the average distance between street intersections in the rectangular street grids common in most American cities. The length of a block varies from about 1/20 mile (80 meters) in New York to about 1/16 mile (100 meters) in many midwestern cities to about 1/10 mile (160 meters) in cities of the South and West. (In New York and some other cities, streets running on one direction are closer together than streets running perpendicular. In these cities, people often speak of "short blocks" or "long blocks.") Unit Definition (smoot) A smoot is a unit of distance (or "length", as physical scientists say) used for measuring the Harvard Bridge. It is named after an MIT fraternity pledge at Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, Oliver R. Smoot (class of 1962), who in October, 1958 was rolled head over heels by his fraternity brothers to measure the length of the bridge. The smoot is equal to his height (five feet and seven inches -- 1.70 m), and the bridge's length was measured to be "364.4 smoots plus one ear".
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