8/13/2015

MEASUREMENT

SCIENTIFIC
• Is a process that brings
precision by specifying
the “how much” and “of

MEASUREMENT
what” of a property in a
particular situation.
• Is not limited to physical
quantities, but can
extend to quantifying
almost anything
LECTURE 1 (PHYSICS 1)
imaginable.
• Is a hallmark of good
science.

MEASUREMENT MEASUREMENT
Scientific research
QUALITATIVE
MEASUREMENT • Is essential
• Includes the
• Descriptive process of
observation collecting data
which can be used
QUANTATIVE
to make claims
MEASUREMENT about learning.
• Observation made • Is also used to
with measuring evaluate the
instrument and effectiveness of a
includes both a program or
number and a unit. product.

MEASUREMENT MEASUREMENT
Physical quantities
• Any number that is
Physics and used to describe a
Engineering physical phenomenon.
• Describing away to
• Is the process of
calculate the quantity
comparing physical from other quantities
quantities of real that we can measure.
world objects and • The building blocks of
events. physics.
• Length, mass, time velocity,
speed, acceleration, density,
“A measurement is a comparison to
resistivity, temperature, force,
a standard”
William Shockley energy, electric and magnetic
fields and many more.

1
 8/13/2015

STANDARDS AND UNITS STANDARDS AND UNITS

2 major systems of standard units
STANDARD UNIT United State 1. English System Unit
• Uses standard units that
• Are established were originally based on
the referent unit. human body parts.
2. Metric System Unit
• Are usually
• Uses standard units based
defined and on referents found in nature.
established by • Also uses a system of
governments prefixes to express larger or
and their Canada smaller amounts of units.
SI system - modern version of
agencies that metric system;
are created for French word:
that purpose. “Système Internatiȯnal d’ Unitès”
English word:
“International System of Units”

STANDARDS AND UNITS STANDARDS AND UNITS

2 classes of units: 2. derived units – combinations of basic units.
1. Basic units – unit has a well defined standard.

STANDARDS AND UNITS

UNCERTAINTY
Measurement of time:
2 aspects:
±
1. Civil purposes

• It indicates the
difference from
2. Scientific purposes measured value
and true value.

2
 8/13/2015

SIGNIFICANT FIGURES SCIENTIFIC NOTATION

• The number of meaningful digits in a number. • Is based on powers of the base number
10.
• Deal with precision of measurement.
2 different types of numbers: 1.23 𝑥 1011 Exponent/power of 10

1. Exact number – those number without any

Based 10
uncertainty or error.
coefficient
Examples: 100, 2, 1 ft = 12 in, 1 m = 100 cm • It must be greater than or
equal to 1 and less than 10
2. Measured number – those number obtained
from measurement processes and so generally
have some degree of uncertainty or error.

SCIENTIFIC NOTATION SCIENTIFIC NOTATION

Number Greater than 10
• Locate the decimal and move to the left so that
there are only one non-zero digit it its left.
• The resulting placement of the decimal will
produce the N part of the standard scientific
notation expression.
• Count the number of places that you had to
move the decimal that number of positions will
equal to the exponent of the expression.
Example:
23419 = 2.3419 x 104
Number Less than 10
• Same steps except in order to position the
decimal with only one non-zero decimal, we will
have to move it to the RIGHT.
• The number of positions that we had to move it
to the right will be equal to negative. We will
end up with a negative exponent.
Example:
0.000436 = 4.36 x 10-4