The metric system is based on "tens", and it provides a useful method for describing the sizes of objects. It is also easy to understand, thanks to the evolutionary accident that gave human beings 10 fingers.
The symbol "^" means "to the exponent". The expression 10^-1, "ten to the minus one" is the same as one-tenth, or 0.1. 10^-2 is the same as one-hundredth, or 0.01, and so on.
Each step represents a magnification of 10, and begins with the scale of the familiar, everyday world,
The Scale of Life
10^-1 meters, 10 centimetres. The human hand. Individual hairs can be seen on skin that hides veins, muscles and bones.
10^-2 meters, 1 centimeter. The skin can be seen as being made up of thousands of sections, a flexible structure that covers the entire human body.
10^-3 meters, 1 millimeter. A single crease in the skin appears like a giant valley in a vast mountain range.
10^-4 meters, 100 microns. Again the skin takes on the appearance of mountains, with the rough surface looking like uneven mounds of earth.
Into the Human Body
10^-5 meters, 10 microns. Through the skin and into a blood vessel, a single white blood cell comes into view. A sphere, one of billions, used by the body to fight infections.
10^-6 meters, 1 micron. Into the white blood cell, a second surface comes into view. It is the outer wall of the cell’s nucleus.
The Building Blocks of all Life
10^-7 meters, 0.1 micron. A mass of twisted molecules. They are DNA, containing the recipe to make an entire human being. The DNA molecules are stored in 46 chromosomes, a copy of which is in every cell in the human body (except for red blood cells).
10^-8 meters, 100 angstroms. The helical structure of DNA is revealed in its full glory. The instructions for each living organism are spelled out in a four letter chemical alphabet. The difference between a human being and the humble worm is nothing more than the order of these letters.
The Building Blocks of all Matter
10^-9 meters, 1 nanometer. The forms of individual molecules become apparent. In view, a single carbon atom is bonded to three hydrogen atoms.
10^-10 meters, 1 angstrom. The rules of common sense begin to fail as quantum effects become dominant. A cloud smears out the probabilities of electron positions.
10^-11 meters, 10 picometers. Close to the carbon nucleus, there is a haze caused by the two inner electrons.
10^-12 meters, 1 picometer. The carbon nucleus begins to appear. 6 protons and 6 neutrons form a sphere that could be mistaken for a distance planet as seen from space.
10^-13 meters, 0.1 picometer. The 12 particles of the carbon nucleus jostle and fluctuate according to the laws of quantum mechanics. The electromagnetic force is superseded by the nuclear force.
The Structure of Matter
10^-14 meters, 10 fermis. The bizarre structure of the atomic nucleus is revealed. 12 orbs huddle in the centre of the view.
10^-15 meters, 1 fermi. The inner workings of a single proton. The laws governing quarks come into play as the lower edge of physics is approached.
The Smallest Scale Known
10^-16 meters, 0.1 fermi. A strange, unexplored realm of quantum laws and undiscovered natural processes. Here the journey ends.
References:
Morrison, Philip & Morrison, Phylis. Powers Of Ten, About the Relative Size of Things in the Universe. Scientific American Books, 1982.
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