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[–] Teh_Sauce_Guy ago 

To convert absolute temperature, you just put some numbers in. But to covert temperature change, you would calculate the initial temperature in F, the final temperature in F, and subtract them from each other.

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[–] KyJoCaThe2nd 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

Not really required, but that works.

The conversion is set up exactly as a y=mx+b formula, but let's think about what goes into it.

F = C * 9/5 + 32

Let's use the states of pure water to define our equations. Any two equivalent pairs of temperatures work, but water state changes are probably the most well-known.

Let's imagine we're using F as our y-axis of a graph with C as our x-axis. We know that water freezes at 0C and 32F and boils at 100C and 212F. W can call these the points (0,32) and (100,212), so now we need to define a line that connects those points. The b is just the y-intercept, or the y-value when x=0, which we clearly see is 32. To get the slope, m, we need to calculate rise over run, or how much the line goes up while going out. So we take (F2-F1)/(C2-C1) and get 180/100 which can be reduced to 9/5 or written as 1.8. And there we have our conversion: F=1.8C+32.

How is that useful to just convert a change in temperature? It shows us that for every 1 degree change Celsius, we have a 1.8 degree change Fahrenheit, so 0.9ΔC = 1.62ΔF. The extra 32 degrees are only needed if we need to convert between actual temperature values instead of just changes.

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[–] Teh_Sauce_Guy 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

Huh, I didn't know about this. Really informative, thanks!