MEASUREMENT

Elements of a Meaningful
Measurement
 It should have a defined unit of
measure.
 There must be an existence of the
determinable magnitude of a particular
quantity through measurements.
 The appropriate manner of knowing
the determinable magnitude should be
used.
 Measuring Devices:
 RULER
It is calibrated in cm with a mm least
count. That is, the millimeter is the
unit of the smallest reading that can
be made without estimating. A
measurement reading usually has
one more SF than the least count
reading of the scale. The least count
of our ruler is 0.1 cm (1 mm) and
therefore a reading can be made to
0.01 cm (0.1 mm)
 VERNIER CALIPER
It allows the fractional part of the smallest
division to be accurately determined, not
merely estimated. The vernier scale of
most vernier caliper allows us to measure
to nearest 1/50 of 1 mm or 0.02 mm
which is the least count of the instrument.
 Steps in Getting a Reading Using a
Vernier Caliper
1. Get the main scale reading (MR).
MR is the graduation in the main
scale that lies immediately to the
left of zero in the vernier scale.
2. Get the fractional reading (FR) in
the vernier scale. FR is the vernier
scale division that lines up with the
first main scale division multiplied
with the least count of the vernier
caliper.
3. Get the observed reading (OR).
OR = MR + FR

• MICROMETER CALIPER
It is used to measure even smaller
dimensions than the vernier caliper.
 Accuracy and Precision in
Measurements
 Accuracy means the nearness to the
actual value. The percentage error
between a measured quantity and
its accepted value gives the degree
of accuracy of the measurement.
experimental - theoretical
% error = /------------------------------/ X 100 %
theoretical
 Precisionindicates the
repeatability of data. We say
that the most precise instrument
is the one which gives you the
almost similar value for every
sample or trials.
Error and Error Analysis
General Types of Errors:
 Systematic Errors - maybe due to
miscalibration of the measuring
device or faulty of reading

 Random Errors – arises from

uncontrollable statistical deviations
 Rules for determining the number of
significant digits:
 All non-zero digits are significant.
 The leftmost nonzero digit is the first or
most significant figure. For example,
in the number 0.02340, the first
significant figure is the 2.
 If there is a decimal point, the rightmost
digit is the last or least significant
figure. For example, in 0.02340 the
first two zeros from the left are not
significant but the zero after the 4 is
significant.
 If there is no decimal point explicitly
shown, the rightmost non-zero digit
is the least significant figure. For
example, in 3400 the 4 is the least
significant figure since neither zero is
significant in this case.
 All digits between the most
significant figure and the least
significant figure are significant. For
example, 6.07 has three significant
figures.
 MULTIPLICATION or DIVISION
Keep the same number of sig figs as
the factor with the least number of
sig figs.
Example: 1.2 x 4.56 = 5.472 on the
calculator. But since the one factor
has only 2 sig figs, the answer must
be rounded to 2 sig figs or 5.5.
 ADDITION or SUBTRACTION
 Keep the same number of decimal
places as the factor with the least
amount.
Example: 1.234 + 5.67 = 6.904 on the
calculator. But since the one factor has
only 2 decimal places, so must the
answer. Thus the result must be rounded
to 6.90 (where the zero is significant. See
rule 3 above.)
 Calculations Involving Significant
Figures
 Rules for Rounding off Numbers

Rule 1. If the digit to be dropped is

less than 5, drop that digit and all
other to the right of that digit.

eg - Round off 86.0234 g to 3

significant figures.--- 86.0 g
Rule 2. If the digit to be dropped is
greater than or equal to 5, increase
the value of the last digit retained by
one.
eg - Round off 0.06587 L to 3
significant figures.--- 0.0659 L
Rule 3.
If the digits to be dropped are to the
left of the decimal point, zeros are
used as their replacements.
eg 1- Round off 1780.1 m to 4
significant figures.---
1.780 x 103 m Do not leave it as '1780 m' as it is
confusing.
eg 2 - Round off 25,369 g to 3
significant figures.--- 2.54 x 104 g
 Additional Rule* If the digit to be
dropped is 5 and is followed by zeros,
drop the 5 and
(i) keep the last digit as is if the digit
before the '5' is even, or
(ii) increase the last digit by 1 if the digit
before the '5' is odd (This rule is strictly
applied if you are doing round off of
statistical data as it prevents
consistent rounding up of the data.)
eg 1 - Round off 47.250 g to 3 significant
figures. --- 47.2 g
eg 2 - Round off 47.350 g to 3 significant
figures. --- 47.4 g
Rules for Addition and Subtraction
The answer must retain the same
number of digits to the right of the
decimal point as were present in the
value with the fewest number of
digits to the right of the decimal
point.
Question: If you have 3.18 L of water
and you add 0.01315 L more. How
much water do you end up with?
The answer is 3.19 L; 3 significant figures.
Rules for Multiplication and Division
 The answer must contain the same
number of significant figures as were
present in the measurement with the
fewest number of significant figures.
 Question: A student measures the
length of a table to be 120.2 cm and
the length to be 29.5 cm. What is
the area of the table?
The answer is 3.55 x 103 cm2; 3
significant figures.
 References:
 http://www.physics.smu.edu/~scalise/apparatus/caliper/
 http://www.penntoolco.com/catalog/products/products.cfm?cat
egoryID=179
 http://sciencekit.com/category.asp?c=428223
 http://www2.pvc.maricopa.edu/ms/astro/sigfigs.htm
 http://nobel.scas.bcit.ca/chem0010/unit1/1.7_calculationsigFig_
rounding.htm
 Physics 71.1 Laboratory Manual (unpublished)