Measurement is an essential part of the scientific process.
"Measurement is the estimation or determination of extent, dimension or capacity, usually in relation to some standard or unit of measurement. The measurement is expressed as a number of units of the standard (a real number times a unit), such as distance being indicated by a number of miles or kilometers.
The process of measuring involves estimating the ratio of the magnitude of a quantity to the magnitude of a unit of the same type (e.g. length, time, mass, etc.). A measurement is the result of such a process, expressed as the product of a real number and a unit, where the real number is the estimated ratio. An example is 9 metres, which is an estimate of an object's length relative to a unit of length, the metre. Unlike a count, or integer quantity of items that is known exactly, every measurement is an estimate that has some uncertainty."
Measurement. (2006, August 17). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 22:41, August 27, 2006, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Measurement&oldid=70173344