Are you trying to measure 15 centimeters without a ruler? Good luck! You could know that 15 centimeters is equal to 5.90551 inches, but that doesn’t help visualize this length, does it? What you can do instead is use common objects as a reference.
Any of the following items can be used to estimate 15 centimeters in a pinch:
- Sunglasses
- Toothbrush
- 2 sticks of gum
- 2 playing cards
- ½ strand of spaghetti
- Tissue box
- 2 tennis balls
- 3 AA batteries
- Banana
1. Sunglasses
Sunglasses are cool fashion accessories that are rich in history! Something you may not have known is that they originated in China in the 12th century. Granted, the original versions weren’t as sleek as what we have today, but using smoky quartz to hide a judge’s eyes in court is a pretty neat idea.
Now, think about your favorite sunglasses. The temple, or the foldable section that slips behind your ears, is about 15 centimeters long. Of course, it depends on how far your ears stretch back behind your head! So, next time you’re curious about how long something is, just picture your sunglasses lying next to it.
2. Toothbrush
Toothbrushes have been keeping our pearly whites white since around 3000 BC. Back then, people used twigs. In the 1930s, nylon bristles replaced boar hair. Imagine sticking the hair of a wild beast in your mouth and expecting a shiny outcome!
Here’s a cool trick: Your trusty toothbrush’s length is roughly 15 centimeters. Your child’s toothbrush is about 1-2 centimeters shorter. Electric toothbrushes, on the other hand, are about 10 inches tall (25.4 centimeters) or roughly twice as long as what we’re trying to measure.
3. 2 Sticks of Gum
Here’s another invention that was invented a lot earlier than you may think! While the first patent for chewing gum came about in 1869, researchers found traces of gum dating 9,500 years in the past. Ancient Greeks chomped on tree resin, while the Mayans preferred sap from the sapodilla tree. So, gum, or versions of it, has been keeping our breath fresh for millennia!
A single stick of gum measures 7.62 centimeters long, according to the USDA. So, stick 2 of them together end to end, and you’ll end up with about a 15-centimeter tool.
4. 2 Playing Cards
Playing cards have a deep history in the gaming world. The first playing cards were dated back to before 1000 AD in China. The kings, queens, and jacks in a deck were simply reflections of what royal members would wear, even though some custom-made decks may have representations of real royal members.
Want to measure something about 15 centimeters long? Just line up 2 playing cards end-to-end since each measures 8.89 centimeters long. You can also use jumbo playing cards as a makeshift ruler, but with this set of legal-sized cards, you need to halve its length.
5. ½ Strand of Spaghetti
Spaghetti, everyone’s favorite pasta, actually means “little twines” in Italian. Plus, it’s been twirling around forks since the Middle Ages! The longest spaghetti strand ever made measured 3,776 meters. You’d need a pretty big fork to twirl it without breaking!
Go to your cabinet and open your box of spaghetti pasta. Pull a noodle out and measure it. The figure should be around 10-12 inches or 25-30 centimeters. That means halving it will get you to 15 centimeters. Just don’t snap the noodle in front of avid pasta lovers!
6. Tissue Box
Disposable has been around since the 1920s, with the purpose of removing cold cream. Today, they’re used for wiping anything from your face to your desk. The plastic covering on a tissue box does more than prevent moisture from ruining your tissues—it also allows you to pull out a sheet at a time!
Next time you need to visualize 15 centimeters, just think of the height of a square tissue box. These tissue box sizes are 5-1/4 inches or 13.3 centimeters tall. If all you have are standard rectangular boxes, try stacking 2 of them to get a total height of 6 inches or 15.24 centimeters.
7. 2 Tennis Balls
Tennis balls are those furry green spheres that people whack around with rackets. You can also use them to play fetch with your dog, but they’re mainly used for tennis—hence the name. Tennis balls were originally black or white, but in 1972, regulation balls were standardized with neon-green fur.
Standard tennis balls can measure up to 2.7 inches or 6.85 centimeters in diameter. Touch 2 balls together, and you’ll have a total length of not exactly 15 inches but close enough. You can also use a tennis racket to measure 15 inches, but you’ll need to quarter its length of 27 inches or 68.58 centimeters.
8. 3 AA Batteries
Batteries are portable sources of power that rely on chemical reactions to power up your electronics. They come in all sorts of sizes, but one of the most-used household sizes in AA. The chemical makeup of the battery will determine its voltage. For the most part, AA batteries are rated at 1.5 volts.
Need a quick way to measure 15 centimeters? Place 3 AA batteries in a line lengthwise, and you’ll have precisely 15 centimeters since each battery measures 5 centimeters. AAA batteries can work, too, but they’ll be about a cat’s whisker short of 15 centimeters.
9. Banana
Bananas aren’t just hilariously-shaped fruits—they’re packed with all sorts of vitamins and nutrients. This fruit is grown in humid climates, mostly in South America and Asia, and is shipped right to your supermarket. Bananas have also been used to smuggle illicit products into other countries, but that’s a story for another time.
What’s important now is the size of a banana. Like all agricultural products, one banana won’t be the exact length as another. On average, bananas measure 5-1/2 to 8 inches and beyond. A small banana will do the trick if you want to gauge 15 centimeters by eye.
