What is a Second?

In science, a "second" is a unit of measurement for time. It is used to measure the duration of events or the intervals between them.

Study Guide

1. Definition: A second is a unit of time that is equal to 1/60th of a minute or 1/3,600th of an hour.
2. Symbol: The symbol for second is "s".
3. Measuring Time: A second is a very short amount of time. It is often used to measure quick events, such as the ticking of a clock or the time it takes for a ball to roll across the floor.
4. Timing Events: We use seconds to time how long it takes to do something, like running a race or boiling an egg.
5. Subdivisions: Just like an hour has 60 minutes and a minute has 60 seconds, a second can be divided into smaller units of time, such as milliseconds (1/1,000th of a second) and microseconds (1/1,000,000th of a second).