Practical Vocabulary

Question 1

independent variable

Answer 1

one under investigation, changed systematically and for which we can choose different values

Question 2

dependent variable

Answer 2

one we mearsure to judge the effect of changing the independent variable

Question 3

control variable

Answer 3

kept constant to ensure a fair test is carried out

Question 4

range

Answer 4

the minimumand maximun values for the independent jor the dependent variable.

Question 5

interval

Answer 5

difference chosen between consecutive values of the independent variable

Question 6

anomalous result

Answer 6

a rusult that does not follow an established pattern

Question 7

precise results

Answer 7

results in which each set of repeat readings are grouped closely together

Question 8

accurate results

Answer 8

results that reflect the true value of a quantity

Question 9

random error

Answer 9

cause results to fluctuate around a mean value. The results are made more reliable by making a number of readings and averaging them. e.g. human error

Question 10

systematic error

Answer 10

affects all the measurements in the same way, giving values higher or lower than the true result. Hence cannnot be averaged out. e.g. heat loss in enthalpy change experiment