The furlong–firkin–fortnight (FFF) system is a humorous system of units based on unusual or impractical measurements. The length unit of the system is the furlong, the mass unit is the mass of a firkin of water, and the time unit is the fortnight.[1][2] Like the SIormetre–kilogram–second systems, there are derived units for velocity, volume, mass and weight, etc. It is sometimes referred as the FFFF system where the fourth 'F' is degrees Fahrenheit for temperature.
While the FFF system is not used in practice it has been used as an example in discussions of the relative merits of different systems of units.[1][3] Some of the FFF units, notably the microfortnight, have been used jokingly in computer science. Besides having the meaning "any obscure unit",[4] the derived unit furlongs per fortnight has also served frequently in classroom examples of unit conversion and dimensional analysis.[5][6]
One microfortnight is equal to 1.2096 seconds.[2] This has become a joke in computer science because in the VMSoperating system, the TIMEPROMPTWAIT variable, which holds the time the system will wait for an operator to set the correct date and time at boot if it realizes that the current value is invalid, is set in microfortnights. This is because the computer uses a loop instead of the internal clock, which has not been activated yet to run the timer.[7] The documentation notes that "[t]he time unit of micro-fortnights is approximated as seconds in the implementation".[8]
The Jargon File reports that the millifortnight (about 20 minutes) and nanofortnight have been occasionally used.[7]
The speed of lightis1.8026×1012 furlongs per fortnight (1.8026 terafurlongs per fortnight). By mass–energy equivalence, 1 firkin is equal to 3.24936676×1024 firkin·furlong2/fortnight2 (≈ 3.478×1015BTU, or 3.669×1018joules).
^The firkin of the FFF System is defined as the mass of an imperialfirkin (9 imp gal) of water. The imperial gallon was originally defined as the volume of 10 lb of distilled water (weighed according to specific conditions). From this definition a density of 10 lb/imp gal is derived, giving the firkin of water a mass of 90 lb.
^Indeed, if the inch were defined as 2.5454... cm, it would be 1 cm/min[9]
^The foot-fathom is a unit of area; 1 foot-fathom is equal to 6 square feet.
