How far is a klick?

Search: click measurement

Why: In Avatar (that new blockbuster with all the giant blue cat people), the military men say everything is "20 klicks away" or "4 klicks away" or whatever. That means nothing to me.

Answer: It's a kilometer, aka 0.62 mile! Its use became popular among US soldiers during the Vietnam War during the 1960s/1970s, though veterans of the war recall its usage as early as the 1950s. The term is of unknown origin, but it is probably a pseudo-condensation of the work "kilometer."

Source: ConvertUnits.com, Wikipedia

The More You Know: Avatar is pretty great. I saw it in IMAX 3D obviously. Pret-ty great. Also, look at the IMDb page. (It's blue.)

Meow.

In Hinduism, Avatar or Avatara (Sanskrit for "descent" viz., from heaven to earth, from the verbal root tṝ "to cross over") refers to a deliberate descent of a deity from heaven to earth. It is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," though more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation."