Physics Notes - Measurements and Uncertainties

A new tuple: M,C,E,A

The Ideas
 Measurements: An interaction with the system with an external tool to find a number
that would give a quantitative representation of the physical quantities.
 Calculation: Using algebraic and arithmetic equations to fin values of other physical
quantities of a system based on some initial measurements.
 Estimation: To guess with logical progression and back-of-the-envelope calculations,
some values that the physical quantities of a system can have.
 Analysis: To check for the accuracy of the numbers taken from measurements,
calculations and estimations and the extent of their reliability.

Units and Standards

 Unit: A quantity chosen as a standard in terms of which other quantities may be

expressed.
 Fundamental Units: The units of the physical which are defined without any
reference to any other physical quantities are called Fundamental Units. There are 7 of
them.
Quantity Name Symbol
Length Meter m
Mass Kilogram Kg
Time Second s
Electric Current Ampere a
Temperature Kelvin k
Amount of Substance Mole mol
Luminous Intensity Candela cd

1. Metre: This is the unit of distance. It is the distance travelled by light in a vacuum in
a time of ____1_____
299792458.
2. Kilogram: This is the unit of mass. It is the mass of a certain quantity of a platinum-
iridium alloy kept at the Bureau International des Poids et Measures in France.
3. Second: This is the unit of time. A second is the duration of 9,192,631,770 full
oscillations of the electromagnetic radiation emitted in a transition between the 2
hyperfine energy levels in the ground state of a caesium-133 atom.
4. Ampere: This is the unit o electric current. It is defined as that current, which when
flowing in 2 parallel conductors 1m apart, produces a force of 2x10^7N on a length of
1m conductors.
5. Kelvin: This is the unit of temperature. It is ___1___ of the thermodynamic of the
triple point of water. 273.16

6. Mole: One mole of a substance contains as many particles as there are atoms in 12g
of carbon-12. This special number of particles is called Avogadro’s number and is
approximately 6.02x10^2x(3).
7. Candela: This is a unit of luminous intensity. It is the intensity of a source of a
frequency 5.40x10^1x(4)