Unit Conversions

Date: 4/3/96 at 10:22:18
From: Barbara Noyes
Subject: Conversion Question

How many feet are contained in an acre?  I know a foot is a linear 
measurement and an acre is an area so where do I go from here?  

Date: 4/4/96 at 11:13:12
From: Doctor Aaron
Subject: Re: Conversion Question

Hi, 

An acre is a unit of area so it doesn't make sense to talk about 
how many feet there are in an acre, it only makes sense to talk 
about how many square feet or other square units there are in an 
acre.

There are 4840 square yards in an acre. You wanted this in feet so 
just multiply by 9  to get 43560 square feet (there are 9 square 
feet in a square yard).  It may seem strange that this is not a 
perfect square, but there is also a unit of length called the 
acre-length that is 220 yards.  220 squared is 48400, so an acre 
is a plot of land 220 yards by 22 yards.  Then 10 acres side by 
side are 220 yards by 220 yards, and an 8 by 8 square of these 10 
acre plots is one square mile.  

I hope this is helpful.

-Doctor Aaron,  The Math Forum