scientific skills Flashcards
what is a terameter in metres
10 to the power of 12
what is a gigameter in metres
10 to the power of 9
what is a megameter in metres
10 to the power of 6
what is a kilometre in metres
10 to the power of 3
what is a centimetre in metres
10 to the power of -2
what is a millimetre in metres
10 to power of -3
what is a picometre in metres
10 to the power of -12
what is a micrometre in metres
10 to the power of -6
what is a nanometre inn metres
10 to the power of -9
what does it mean to say an investigation is repeatable
- when an investigator repeats an investigation and gets similar results
what does it mean to say an investigation is reproducible
when there are similar results produced by different investigators with different equipment
define accuracy and give two ways it can be improved
a measurement which is close to a true value
- repeating measurements and finding a mean average
- use a more accurate way of measuring variables
define random error and how it can be reduced
errors out of your control
- repeat experiment and calculate mean values
NOT HUMAN ERROR
define systematic error and give two ways it can be reduced
the results differ from the true value by a consistent amount for each reading, usually due to problems with the use of equipment
- do the experiment again using a different technique or equipment
-reject the initial results
define zero error
- when a measuring system gives a false reading when the true value is 0
e.g a thermometer
