Measurement and Uncertainty Flashcards
what is measurment
act of quantifying a characteristic element or object
the units used to quantify depend on what
the type of measurement being made
if it is a fundamental quantity, then the label is simply
meters or kilograms or seconds
if it is a derived quantity, then the label represents
the elements from which the measure is derived
-square meters or Pascal
if it is a derived quantity, then the label represents
the elements from which the measure is derived
- square meters or Pascal
every measurement has a degree of uncertainty, how is it determined?
by the scale used to make the measurement
- finer markings have less uncertainty
what is precision?
being able to make repeated measurements and get the same outcome each time
what is accuracy?
degree of closeness of the measurement to the actual measurement value
what is error and what is it used to do?
- the difference between the average value and the true value
- summarize all the flaws in the measurement
what is random error referred to as?
variability or random variation
what is random error?
error due to chance
random error does not have what?
direction
- average of all deviations from average value will be ~0
what happens to random error when more samples are taken and what is affected?
the reduction in error will be greater
- impacts precision
systematic error is referred to as what?
bias
what is systematic error?
error not due to chance alone
what does systematic error have?
net direction
- averaging over a large number of samples does not remove the error
how do you fix systematic errors and what is impacted?
by recognizing the source of the error
- recalibrating the equipment
- impacts accuracy and 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
A
who is more accurate when measuring a book that has a true length of 17.0 cm?
Susan: 17.0 cm, 16.0 cm, 18.0 cm, 15.0 cm
Amy: 15.5 cm, 15.0 cm, 15.2 cm, 15.3 cm
Susan
who is more precise when measuring the same 17.0 cm book?
Susan: 17.0 cm, 16.0 cm, 18.0 cm, 15.0 cm
Amy: 15.5 cm, 15.0 cm, 15.2 cm, 15.3 cm
Amy
how do you decide what is accurate or precise?
Accuracy- consider the mean value and compare that to the expected (nominal value)
Precision- consider the standard deviation among the measurement (spread in the data)
summary for accuracy and precision
Accurate/Precise= on target #
Accurate/Not precise= near target #
Not accurate/precise= near e/o, not near target #
Not accurate/Not precise= random, not near e/o or target #
what to remember about accuracy/precision
- A measurement can be precise but not accurate
- A measurement can be neither accurate or precise
- A measurement can be accurate but not precise (increased variability)
- A measurement can be precise and accurate
if I measure a length of string and record that is it 10 cm long and my colleague measures the same string and finds that it is 3.93 inches, who is right?
Both are
- difference is the measurement system
how can we describe errors in measurement?
- random
- systemic (bias)
how is systemic bias split/what type of errors are systematic?
- offset errors
- scale factor errors
what is the difference between offset errors and scale factor errors?
offset- calibration error or no offset made
scale factor- errors proportional to “true” measurement
example of offset error-
imagine you have a home scale, and you want to measure 1 lb of hamburger to freeze from a large amount of hamburger you brought from the store. you haul out the scale and it is set to zero and you put the bowl that will hold the meat on the scale. what will be the offset error?
Any measurement you make will be off by the same amount- the weight of the bowl that holds the meat
consider that you are using a tape measure to measure some fabric and the tape measure has been stretched to 101% of its original size. what will be the scale factor error?
Any measurements that are made with this tape measure will be 101% of the actual measurement.
how do you calculate percent error?
% error= (observed result-expected result)/expected results x 100%
SI Prefixes
10^1 deca da
10^‐1 deci d
10^2 hecto h
10^‐2 centi c
10^3 kilo k
10^‐3 milli m
10^6 mega M
10^‐6 micro μ
10^9 giga G
10^‐9 nano n
10^12 tera T
10^‐12 pico p
non-SI units
time (minute (m), hour (h). day (d))
volume (liter (L or l))
mass (ton (t))
energy (electronvolt (eV))
non-SI unit relation to Si
time:
- 1 min= 60 s
- 1 h= 3600s
- 1 d= 86400s
volume:
- 1 L= 1 cm^3
mass:
- 1 t = 1000 kg
energy:
- 1 eV= 1.602 x 10^-19 J
base units
time (seconds- s)
length (meter- m)
mass (kilogram- kg)
what are derived units?
units that combine two base units
events that repeat
If there are events that occur repeatedly then it makes it easier to talk about the time it takes before the event starts again.
- This time between events is the period and is measured in units of time (s)
- Can also consider how many times an event happens in a unit of time (frequency)
Relation between period and frequency
Frequency (Hz)= 1/ Period (s)
- have inverse relationship
As freq increases, period decreases
As period decreases, freq increases
velocity
measure of distance over time (v (m/s)= d (m)/t (s))
acceleration and velocity relationship
if the velocity of an object changes then it is accelerating
how to calculate acceleration
acceleration (m/s^2)= change in velocity (m/s)/time (s)
change in velocity
velocity at the end of the measurement interval- velocity at the beginning of the measurement interval
what two measurements are needed to calculate area?
length and width
reported as m^2
what three measurements are needed to calculate volume?
length, width and height
reported as m^3
- need to count # of cubes if object is irregular shape