Solid angle of its faces is one-sixth of that, or sr. Solid angles can also be measured in square degrees (1 sr = () square degrees), in square minutes and square seconds, or in fractions of the sphere (1 sr = fractional area), also known as spat (1 sp = 4 sr). In spherical coordinates there is a formula for the differential, where is the colatitude (angle from the North pole) and is the longitude. The solid angle for an arbitrary oriented surface S subtended at a point P is equal to the solid angle of the projection of the surface S
Surface area ratio is credited to Archimedes. Surface area is important in chemical kinetics. Increasing the surface area of a substance generally increases the rate of a chemical reaction. For example, iron in a fine powder will combust, while in solid blocks it is stable enough to use in structures. For different applications a minimal or maximal surface area may be desired. The surface area of an organism is important in several considerations, such as regulation of body temperature and digestion. Animals use their teeth to grind food down into smaller particles, increasing the surface area available for digestion. The epithelial tissue