MeasurementinScienceSignificantFiguresandScientificNotation

Why?
All sciences involve observations sometimes qualitative and sometimes quantitative.
Quantitativeobservationsinvolvemeasurementinoneformoranother.Itmaybemeasurementof
a distance, a volume, a mass or any one of a range of other quantitative data. How the numbers
from a measurement are written is important in science as it gives information about the
instruments used to make the measurement hence it important to understand the concepts of
significantfiguresandscientificnotation.

SuccessCriteria
Recognisethatthenumberofsignificantfiguresindicatesthelevelofaccuracyoftheinstrument
usedtomakethemeasurement
Identifythenumberofsignificantfiguresinanumber
Writenumbersinscientificnotation

Resources
Textbook(Chapter2)

Information
Significantfigures
The accuracy of any measurement we make is limited by the instrument we use to make the
measurement or the physical constraints of the situation. When recording the measurement we
must do so in a way that tells a reader the level of accuracy (or, if you prefer, the degree of
uncertainty)intheinstrumentusedtomakethemeasurement.

Atthetopoftherulershownbelowthedivisionsareinincrementsofonemillimetre,mm.Thefirst
arrow indicates a position between 2.2 and 2.3. It is incorrect to record it as 2.2 mm or 2.3 mm
because we know it is longer than 2.2 mm and shorter than 2.3 mm. We estimate the second
decimalplacewemightestimatethepositiontobe2.22andwouldrecordthisas2.22mm.This
tells us the ruler has a level of accuracy to 2 decimal places the last digit is uncertain but we are
certainitislongerthan2.2mmandshorterthan2.3mm.Evenifthepositionweretobeexactlyon
one of the marks we must record 2 decimal places. For example, if the position was exactly at 6
(secondarrow)wewouldrecord6.00mmweneedtoincludethezerossoastoinformthereader
that a ruler capable of reading to 2 decimal places was used. The numbers we record in a
measurement are described as significant figures they are significant because they give
informationaboutthelevelofaccuracyofthetoolusedtomakethemeasurement.

Scientificnotation
Theverylargeorverysmallnumbersoftenusedinthesciencescanbedifficulttowriteinstandard
decimal notation. To overcome this problem numbers are frequently written using scientific
notation.Scientificnotationisbasedonpowersofthebasenumber10withnumberswritteninthe
followinggeneralform:

a10
b
whereaisrealnumberbetween0and10.

Forexamplethespeedoflightwhichis300000000ms
1

(threehundredmillionmetrespersecond)
ismoreconvenientlywrittenas

310
8
ms
1

Thenumber0.0000456writteninscientificnotationis4.5610
5
.

Thepowerof10(thevalueofbinthegeneralform)givesthenumberofplacesthedecimalpointis
movedandinwhichdirection.Ifthedecimalpointismovedtotheleftbispositive;movementto
therightmeansbisnegative.

Table1:Scientificnotationfornumbersincreasingbyfactorsof10from0.000001to
100000.

Number Scientificnotation Number Scientificnotation

0.000001 1x10
6
1 1x10
0
0.00001 1x10
5
10 1x10
1

0.0001 1x10
4
100 1x10
2

0.001 1x10
3
1000 1x10
3

0.01 1x10
2
10000 1x10
4

0.1 1x10
1
100000 1x10
5

Significantfiguresincalculations

UseChapter2ofyourtext(pp.2529)tounderstandhowtousesignificantfiguresincalculations.

KeyQuestions

Endofchapter2QuestionsandProblems4,6,8,10,30,32,40,46,48,50

Thefollowingwebsitecanalsoprovidepracticewithscientificnotation.

http://janus.astro.umd.edu/astro/scinote/

1
ChemicalandPhysicalPropertiesandChangesandClassificationofMatter

Why?
To understand the way in which matter behaves, it is useful to be able to recognise how
matterisorganisedandthetypesofchangesitmayundergo.

SuccessCriteria
Identifychemicalandphysicalchanges.
Recognise that physically matter can be classified into homogenous substances and
heterogeneoussubstances
Identifyhomogenoussubstancesandheterogeneoussubstances
Recognisethatchemicallymattercanbeclassifiedintopuresubstancesandmixtures
Recognisethatpuresubstancescanbeclassifiedintoelementsandcompounds
Defineanelementasasubstancecontainingonlyonetypeofatom
Defineacompoundasasubstancecontaining2ormoretypesofatoms

Resources
Textbook(Chapter3)

Information
PhysicalandChemicalChanges

Chemistry can be described as the study of matter, its properties and its transformations. All
substances (matter) have physical and chemical properties and can undergo physical and chemical
changes.

Typical physical properties include colour, density, volume, state (solid, liquid or gas). When the
physical properties of a substance change, the chemical composition of that substance does not
changethereisnonewsubstanceformed.

Often physical changes involve a change in state. Changes in state are usually associated with
changesintemperature.

Chemical properties refer to a substances capacity to form new substances. During chemical
changenewsubstancesareformedandothersareconsumed.

Examples:
Dissolvinglimestonewithanacid
Rustingofiron
Combustionofgas
SOLID
LIQUID GAS
2
KeyQuestions

1. Identifywhichofthefollowingarephysicalchangesandwhicharechemicalchanges.
a. Digestingfood
b. Cookinganegg
c. Boilingalcohol
d. Bleachinghairwithperoxide
e. Cuttinganappleintopieces.

2. Givetwofurtherexamplesof
a. physicalchanges

b. chemicalchanges

ElementsandCompounds

Much of the matter we encounter in everyday life is not pure it is a mixture. Mixtures can be
separatedintopuresubstances.

Compoundscanbebrokendownintosimplersubstancesbychemicalprocesses.Eventually,aswe
continue to break down a substance we reach a point where it cannot be broken down in to a
chemicallysimplersubstance.Atthisstagewehaveanelement.

Elementscannotbedecomposedintochemicallysimplersubstances.

Compoundsaremadeof2ormoreelementschemicallycombined.
Physical
processes
MIXTURES
PURESUBSTANCES
(elements/compounds)
Canbeseparated
Cannotbefurther
separated(byphysical
processes)
distillation
filtration
decantation
etc
3

Model1:AWayofClassifyingMatter

Newsubstance
formed.i.e.
compositionchanges
Puresubstancesare
alsohomogeneous
PURITY
PHYSICAL
CHANGES
CHEMICAL
Physicalformchanges
withoutchangein
composition.
Mixture
(impuresubstance;
variable
composition)
Homogeneous
propertiesare
constantthroughout
Eg.Saltwater,air,
brass
Heterogeneous
variableproperties
throughout
MATTER
Compoundcontains2or
moretypesofatoms.Can
beseparatedbychemical
meansintoitselements.
Eg.Water,H
2
O
Elementcontainsonly
onetypeofatom.Cant
befurtherseparated.
Puresubstances
(fixedcomposition;
propertiesdont
changeonfurther
purification)
(reactions)
Chemical
processes
COMPOUNDS
ELEMENTS
Canbedecomposed
(brokendown)
Cannotbedecomposed
(brokendown)
4
Someexamplesoftheclassificationofmatterare:

Oxygengasat25Cpuresubstance,element,homogeneous
Sugardissolvedinwaterat25Cmixture,homogeneous
Waterat0Cpuresubstance,compound(H
2
O),homogeneous(assumingnoicepresent),
heterogeneous(withicepresent)
Teawithtealeavespresentmixture,heterogeneous

KeyQuestions

1. Identifythefollowingasapuresubstance,ahomogeneousmixtureoraheterogeneousmixture.
a. Instantcoffeedissolvedinhotwater
b. Acarbonateddrinkwiththelidscrewedon
c. Acarbonateddrinkwiththelidremoved
d. Smokeyair
e. Sugar
f. Mountainair
g. Nitrogengasinagascylinder

2. Whichofthefollowingstatementsaboutelementsandcompoundsistrue?
a. Mostelementsarefoundfree(i.e.intheirpurestate)innature.
b. Compoundsarepuresubstances.
c. Compoundscanbeseparatedintotheirconstituentelementsbyphysicalprocesses.
d. Elementshavevariableproperties.
e. Compoundshaveuniformproperties.
f. Asampleofacompoundinoneplacewillhavethesamecompositionasasampleofthesame
compoundinadifferentplace.

Pure Substance
Mixture bc there are >1 substance present dissolved - homogeneous
Mixture - Hetrogeneous
Pure Substance - compound
All pure substances are homogeneous
Physical - H2O(s) ---> H2O(l)
Chemical
Physical
Compounds
Element - Molecule
Compounds
Compounds
Element - Molecule