Calculating Area: Decimal Sides vs. Actual Size Explained

[Drakkith]

This was bothering me a bit. When calculating the area of something, say a square, whose sides are in decimal, will the area be smaller than the sides?

Say we have a square with 0.5 inches for all 4 sides. Will the area be 0.5 x 0.5 = 0.25, or would it be 2.5 inches? 5x5 = 25, divided by 10 = 2.5 inches.

 

[zorro]

Why are you dividing by 10? You should divide by 100
5/10 * 5/10=0.25

 

[Drakkith]

I multiplied all the values by 10 to get 5x5=25. Should I be dividing by 100 instead? Seems odd to me that the area is LESS than the 2 side values.Thats pretty much my question, would it be .25 or 2.5 inches for the area?

 

[micromass]

It would be 0.25 square inches...

 

[Drakkith]

It would be 0.25 square inches...

Alright. I thought it would be, but for some reason, when i was thinking about it, it didn't make sense. (Even though I've known how to do area for like 15 years)

Guess I overthought it lol. Thanks guys.