What causes

uncertainties
in measurement?
Measuring
height…
Measurement
Process of
comparing an
unknown
quantity to a
known quantity.
 NO NAKED
NUMBERS

A measurement always has two parts:

A value (this is the number)
A unit of measure (this tells
what you have)

Example:
200 meters; 15 ml; 13.98 grams
Measurements are
fundamental to
experimental sciences. For
that reason, it is
important to be able to
MAKE measurements and
to decide whether a
measurement is CORRECT.
Are you “certain”
that your
measurement is
correct? HOW
“certain” are you?
What
determines if a
measurement is
accurate or
precise?
How do you
evaluate
accuracy and
precision?
How do you
evaluate accuracy
and precision?

How old is
Joshua
Cruzat?
Who is more
accurate and
precise in
identifying
the age of
Joshua?
Measurement
Accurate
Accuracy
-compares a
measurement
to the true
value
Accuracy closest to
TRUE
value

a measure of how close a

measurement comes to
the actual or true value of
whatever is measured
Example: Accuracy
Who is more accurate when measuring a
book that has a true length of 17.0 cm?
Ana:
17.0 cm, 16.0 cm, 18.0 cm, 15.0 cm

Belle:
15.5 cm, 15.0 cm, 15.2 cm, 15.3 cm
Precise
XX
XX X
X
Precision
describes how closely
measurements are to
each other and how
carefully
measurements were
made
Precision repeated
SAVE value

a is a measure of how
close a series of
measurements are to
one another
Precision
Which set is more
precise?
a.18.2 , 18.4 , 18.35
b. 17.9 , 18.3 , 18.85
c. 16.8 , 17.2 , 19.44
Example: Precision

Who is more precise when measuring the

same 17.0 cm book?

John:
17.0 cm, 16.0 cm, 18.0 cm, 15.0 cm

Mark:
15.5 cm, 15.0 cm, 15.2 cm, 15.3 cm
Accuracy vs. Precision
Accuracy vs. Precision
High Accuracy
High Precision High Precision
Low Accuracy
Can you hit the bull's-eye?
Can you hit the bull's-eye?

Both Precise Neither

accurate but not accurate
and accurate nor
precise precise
 Absolute Error

(EA) = (EV) – (AV)

Error = experimental value (EV) - accepted value (AV)
(measured by student) - (correct value)

Determining Error
The experimental value (EV) is the
value measured in the lab. (by the
student)
The accepted value (AV) is the correct
value based on reliable references.
The error is the difference between the
experimental value and the accepted
value
Percent Error/ Relative Error

Percent Error= EV-AV (100%)

AV

The percent error is an

absolute value.
Compute for the percent
error of measurement.

Given:
actual mass of the platinum
iridium cylinder = 1kg
experimental value= 0.75 kg
Percent Error
= .75 kg – 1kg

1 kg=
.25kg/1kg x 100%

= 25%
How do we
compute for the
degree of
accuracy and
precision?
Degree of
Accuracy

100% - Relative
Error
Degree of
Precision
100% - Relative
Deviation
Relative Deviation
(DR) =

DA X 100 %
M
Absolute Deviation
(DA) =

=O–M
N
Absolute Value of Acceleration due to
Gravity = 9.8 m/s2

F m g
288 30 9.6
490 50 9.8
644 70 9.2
810 90 9.0
1078 110 9.8
QUIZ (30/30) PART I
On a 1 whole sheet
of paper, evaluate
whether the
following are
precise, accurate
or both.
Evaluate whether the following are
precise, accurate or both.

1 2 3
QUIZ PART II

Using the given data,

calculate the value of
the relative error and
degree of accuracy
and precision. Show
your complete solution.
 Absolute Weight of the Cylinder = 500 N

m g W
40 9.8 392
41 9.8 402
43 9.8 421
45 9.8 441
47 9.8 461