Scale & Order of Magnitude

by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

• The mode of operation and the associated tools change with the Order of Magnitude.
• There is a change in an order of magnitude when a number (or measure) is multiplied by ten.
• The following are examples of the mode of transportation with the change in order of magnitude. An average person can walk 4+ mph (miles per hour). An average car can be driven 40+ mph. An air plane can be flown 400+ mph.

• Modern Physics evolved from Classical Physics to handle the vast range of speed and size.

• Newtonian Mechanics holds when objects move at a relatively low speed (compared to that of light).
• Relativity comes into play when objects move at a speed closer to that of light.

• The size of an object can span several orders of magnitude.
• [Per Dr. Kyaw Tint] When they become small, Quantum Mechanics can only describe their behaviors.