About This Quiz
You know the bald eagle is a symbol of America, but do you know the average wingspan of this magnificent creature? As many times as you've counted your pennies or folded a dollar bill into your wallet, have you ever stopped to think about the dimensions of that dollar, or just how much that penny weighs? Thrown a few fastballs in your life - does that mean you know the diameter of a baseball? What about a bowling ball - do you know how much it should weigh?
Standardized sizing makes life infinitely easier for businesses, government agencies, and everyday citizens. It keeps us safe - think freeway lanes; protects us from counterfeit cash - bills and coins are made to very specific sizes; and keeps the rules fair across the football field, basketball court or hockey rink.
Beyond the objects you see every day, do you think you can also guess the dimensions of some major structures, like Cinderella's Castle at Disney World, or the Washington Monument or Empire State Building?
This quiz will test not only your ability to eye measurements or calculate weight without a scale, but will also challenge your power of observation, and how closely you pay attention to the world around you. Take our quiz to show your skills!
A brand new penny is worth 1 cent and weighs in at 2.5 grams, or 0.88 ounces, according to the U.S. Mint. Made from copper-plated zinc since the early '80s, a penny measures 0.598 inches thick and is 0.75 inches in diameter.
The Interstate Highway System in the U.S. sets standard lane widths at 12 feet or 3.7 meters. Wider lanes are linked to fewer accidents, except in urban settings, where this isn't necessarily the case. Smaller roads can sometimes be much narrower than the standard freeway lane.
Completed in 1931, the Empire State Building in New York City is a piece of Art Deco glory. It measures 1,250 feet tall, or 1,454 feet if you include its antenna, and ranks among the 30 tallest buildings in the world.
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The height of an adult male can vary significantly by country. In the United States, a typical man stands 5'9. Men are taller in the Netherlands, with an average height of 5'11," and shorter in Peru, averaging 5'5."
A standard sheet of letter-sized paper measures 8.5 inches wide and 11 inches long. Legal paper is 8.5" by 14," which larger tabloid paper is 11" by 17."
There are two major elephant species on Earth, and African elephants tend to be smaller than their Asian cousins. If you come across an African elephant, expect it to measure between 8 and 13 feet tall, and weigh between 2 and 7 tons.
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A bald eagle in flight has a wingspan between 6 and 7.5 feet on average. This bird weighs between 6 and 14 pounds, and measures 28 to 40 inches long.
Cinderella's Castle greets Magic Kingdom visitors in Orlando. At 183 feet tall, it's more than twice the size of the 77-foot Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland in California.
A medium banana measures between 6 and 8 inches. A small banana is around 6 inches long, and contains about three-quarters of a cup of fruit, while a large one measures more than 8 inches and contains a full cup of fruit.
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According to the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, the average cat in the U.S. weights 8 to 10 pounds. This can vary by species, however, with Maine Coons weighing in between 10 and 25 pounds, and Siamese weighing between 5 and 10 pounds.
Football fields in the U.S. are built to very specific measurements. They are 100 yards long but 53-1/3 yard wide.
A blue whale weighs an average of 441,000 pounds and measures 80 to 100 feet long. It weighs a whopping 8,000 pounds at birth, and just the brain of an adult blue whale weighs more than the average elephant.
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A gift from France struck from copper, the Statue of Liberty was dedicated in 1886. The Statue is 151 feet tall, or 305 feet if you include her base, and stands proudly in New York Harbor.
A hummingbird typically weighs between 1/10th and 1/4th of an ounce. The ruby-throated hummingbird, one of the larger members of the species, weighs in at 0.11 ounces.
A dollar bill measures 6.14 inches long and 2.61 inches wide. It weighs about a gram and has a portrait of George Washington on one side and the U.S. seal on the other.
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A Golden Retriever typically weighs between 65 and 75 pounds. Many other canine species are much small, such as Beagles, which weigh 18 to 30 pounds, and Shih Tzus, which weigh 8 to 16 pounds.
The Macbook Air has been a hit with many computer users since it came out in 2008. This wafer-thin laptop weighs just 3 pounds and measures around two-thirds of an inch thick.
According to the Official Baseball Rules used by the MLB, a regulation baseball measures 9 to 9.25 inches in circumference. It weighs between 5 and 5.25 ounces and allows for some wicked curveballs and catches.
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Named for engineer Gustave Eiffel, the Eiffel Tower sits in the heart of Paris. Opened in 1889, it's 984 feet tall, or 1,063 feet tall if you include the pointed tip at the top.
The average U.S. woman is 5'4" tall. In the Netherlands, women range from 5'6' to 5'7" on average, while women in Malaysia are much shorter, varying between 5'0" and 5'1" on average.
No matter which side you took in Deflate-gate, the NFL maintains some pretty strict rules regarding the size of a football. The ball should be 11 to 12 inches long and weigh between 14 and 16 ounces.
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Your brain weighs around 3 pounds, which is about the same as a dolphin's brain. A sperm whale has a brain weighing in around 17 pounds.
Believe it or not, all those slam dunks in the NBA are happening on rims that sit 10 feet above the ground. The court itself measures 94 by 50 feet in the U.S., and slightly smaller internationally.
The U.S. Bowling Congress sets maximum ball weighs at 16 pounds for 10-pin games. Balls used in duckpin bowling typically weigh in between 2 and 4 pounds.
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The tallest of the three pyramids at Giza, the Great Pyramid measures 455 feet high but was closer to 481 feet when it was built between 2580 and 2560 BC. For more than 3,000 years, it was the tallest building in the world.
A standard entry door measures 80 inches high by 36 inches wide. Three feet is the minimum width for a doorway to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act in the U.S.
The USGA sets golf ball diameter minimums at 1.68 inches. The rubber and resin ball must have a mass of no more than 1.62 ounces.
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Mason jars have gone from canning necessity to everyday item. They are used for storing dry goods, holding flowers and may even serve as drinking glasses. A standard pint-sized jar holds 16 ounces.
A can of cola holds 12 ounces in the U.S., measures 4.83 inches high and has a diameter of 2.6 inches at the widest point. These cans, which are almost all made from aluminum today, have been used to hold soft drinks since the 1930s.
Pool tables in the U.S. have six pockets and are built at a 2:1 ratio. That means a table that is 9-foot long will measure 4.5 feet wide. The World Billiards Association only uses tables that are either 8 or 9-foot long, though other sizes are available for private use.
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At 1,792 feet tall, One World Trade has been the tallest building in the U.S. since 2013. It's the sixth tallest building in the world as of 2018, and visitors can take a peek out from its observation deck, which sits at 1254 feet above the ground.
Stop signs in the U.S. are 30 inches across, with the white letters measuring 10 inches high. The signs are posted at a height of 7 feet in urban areas, but may be lower in rural settings.
An Olympic pool measures 50 meters long by 25 meters wide, or 164 feet by 82 feet. It's divided into 10 lanes that are each 8'2" wide.
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An NHL rink in North America measures 200 feet by 85 feet. Internationally, rinks are slightly smaller, at 197 feet by 98 feet.
Made from vulcanized rubber, a hockey puck weighs 5.5 to 6 ounces. It's 1 inch thick and 3 inches in diameter.
A March 2018 article in USA Today puts the average airline seat width at just 17 inches. The average pitch, a measure of legroom, is just 31 inches, but can go much lower on cheaper airlines.
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A baby grand piano weighs between 500 and 800, while a grand piano can weigh up to 1,200 pounds. Small upright versions of the instrument weigh in between 300 and 400 pounds.
Pallet standardization allows for standard equipment like pallet jacks, lifts and storage racks. In the U.S., pallets measure 48 inches by 40 inches by 6 inches and weigh 33 to 48 pounds.
A standard double-looped, gem-style paperclip measures 1-1/4 inches long. So-called jumbo clips measure in at a modest 1-3/4 inches.
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At 554 feet, the Washington Monument was the tallest building in the world from 1884 to 1889. Its world's tallest building title was snatched away by an iron structure in Paris, the Eiffel Tower.