Physics and Physical

Measurement

Topic 1.2 Measurement and

Uncertainties
The S.I. system of
fundamental and derived
units
 A physical quantity : A quantity
that can be used in the mathematical
equations of science and technology.
 A unit : A particular physical
quantity, defined and adopted by
convention, with which other
particular quantities of the same kind
are compared to express their value
Standards of
Measurement
 SIunits are those of the Système
International d’Unités adopted in
1960

 Usedfor general measurement in

most countries
Fundamental Quantities
 Some quantities cannot be
measured in a simpler form and for
convenience they have been
selected as the basic quanitities

 They
are termed Fundamental
Quantities, Units and Symbols
The Fundamentals
 Length metre m
 Mass kilogram kg
 Time second s
 Electric current ampere A
 Thermodynamic temp Kelvin
K
 Amount of a substance mole
mol
Derived Quantities
 When a quantity involves the
measurement of 2 or more
fundamental quantities it is called
a Derived Quantity

 Theunits of these are called

Derived Units
The Derived Units
 Acceleration ms-2
 Angular acceleration rad s-2
 Momentum kgms-1 or Ns
 Others have specific names and
symbols
 Force kg ms-2 or N
 SI derived units with special
names and symbols
Expression
Expression
Derived in terms in terms of
Name Symbol
quantity of SI base
other SI units
units
force newton N - m·kg·s-2
pressure,
pascal Pa N/m2 m-1·kg·s-2
stress
energy,
work,
joule J N·m m2·kg·s-2
quantity of
heat
power,
watt W J/s m2·kg·s-3
radiant flux
electric
potential
difference, volt V W/A m2·kg·s-3·A-1
Larger & smaller units defined
from SI standards by powers of
10 & Greek prefixes
Standards of
Measurement
 Scientists and engineers need to
make accurate measurements so
that they can exchange
information
 To be useful a standard of
measurement must be
 Invariant, Accessible and
Reproducible
3 Standards (for
information)
 The Metre :- the distance traveled by a
beam of light in a vacuum over a
defined time interval ( 1/299 792 458
seconds)
 The Kilogram :- a particular platinum-
iridium cylinder kept in Sevres, France
 The Second :- the time interval
between the vibrations in the caesium
atom (1 sec = time for 9 192 631 770
vibrations)
Conversions
 Youwill need to be able to convert
from one unit to another for the
same quanitity
• J to kWh
• J to eV
• Years to seconds
• And between other systems and SI
Example: KWh to J
1 kWh = 1kW x 1 h
 = 1000W x 60 x 60 s
 = 1000 Js-1 x 3600 s
 = 3600000 J
 = 3.6 x 106 J
J to eV
1 eV = 1.6 x 10-19 J
 = 2.25 x 10²5
SI Format
 The accepted SI format is
• ms-1 not m/s
• ms-2 not m/s/s
 i.e. we use the suffix not dashes
Uncertainity and error in
measurement
Errors
 Errors
can be divided into 2 main
classes

 Random errors
 Systematic errors
Mistakes
 Mistakes on the part of an individual
such as
• misreading scales
• poor arithmetic and computational skills
• wrongly transferring raw data to the final
report
• using the wrong theory and equations
 These are a source of error but are not
considered as an experimental error
Systematic Errors
 Cause a random set of
measurements to be spread about
a value rather than being spread
about the accepted value
 It is a system or instrument value
Systematic Errors result
from
 Badly made instruments
 Poorly calibrated instruments
 An instrument having a zero error,
a form of calibration
 Poorly timed actions
 Instrument parallax error
 Note that systematic errors are not
reduced by multiple readings
Random Errors
 Are due to variations in
performance of the instrument and
the operator
 Even when systematic errors have
been allowed for, there exists
error.
Random Errors result from
 Vibrations and air convection
 Misreading
 Variation in thickness of surface
being measured
 Using less sensitive instrument
when a more sensitive instrument is
available
 Human parallax error
Reducing Random Errors
 Random errors can be reduced by
 taking multiple readings, and
eliminating obviously erroneous
result
 or by averaging the range of
results.
Accuracy
 Accuracy is an indication of how
close a measurement is to the
accepted value indicated by the
relative or percentage error in the
measurement
 An accurate experiment has a low
systematic error
Precision
 Precision is an indication of the
agreement among a number of
measurements made in the same
way indicated by the absolute
error
 A precise experiment has a low
random error
Limit of Reading and
Uncertainty
 The Limit of Reading of a
measurement is equal to the smallest
graduation of the scale of an instrument

 The Degree of Uncertainty of a

measurement is equal to half the limit
of reading
 e.g. If the limit of reading is 0.1cm then
the uncertainty range is 0.05cm
 This is the absolute uncertainty
Reducing the Effects of
Random Uncertainties
 Take multiple readings
 When a series of readings are
taken for a measurement, then the
arithmetic mean of the reading is
taken as the most probable answer
 The greatest deviation or residual
from the mean is taken as the
absolute error
Absolute/fractional errors
and percentage errors
 We use ± to show an error in a
measurement
 (208 ± 1) mm is a fairly accurate
measurement
 (2 ± 1) mm is highly inaccurate
 In order to compare uncertainties,
use is made of absolute, fractional
and percentage uncertainties.
 1 mm is the absolute uncertainty
 1/208 is the fractional uncertainty
(0.0048)
 0.48 % is the percentage
uncertainity
Combining uncertainties
 For addition and subtraction, add
absolute uncertainities
 y = b-c then y ± y = (b-c) ± (b +
c)
Combining uncertainties
 For multiplication and division add
percentage uncertainities
 x = b x c then x = b + c

x b c
Combining uncertainties
 When using powers, multiply the
percentage uncertainty by the
power
 z = bn then z = n b

z b
Combining uncertainties
 Ifone uncertainty is much larger
than others, the approximate
uncertainty in the calculated result
may be taken as due to that
quantity alone
Uncertainties in graphs
Plotting Uncertainties on
Graphs
 Points are plotted with a fine pencil
cross
 Uncertainty or error bars are
required
 These are short lines drawn from
the plotted points parallel to the
axes indicating the absolute error
of measurement
 Uncertainties on a Graph
y

x
Significant Figures
 The number of significant figures
should reflect the precision of the
value or of the input data to be
calculated
 Simple rule:
 For multiplication and division, the
number of significant figures in a
result should not exceed that of the
least precise value upon which it
depends
Estimation
 You need to be able to estimate values of
everyday objects to one or two
significant figures
 And/or to the nearest order of magnitude
 e.g.
• Dimensions of a brick
• Mass of an apple
• Duration of a heartbeat
• Room temperature
• Swimming Pool
 You also need to estimate the result of
calculations
 e.g.
• 6.3 x 7.6/4.9
• = 6 x 8/5
• = 48/5
• =50/5
• =10
• (Actual answer = 9.77)
Approaching and Solving
Problems
 You need to be able to state and
explain any simplifying assumptions
that you make solving problems
 e.g. Reasonable assumptions as to
why certain quantities may be
neglected or ignored
 i.e. Heat loss, internal resistance
 Or that behaviour is approximately
linear
Graphical Techniques
 Graphs are very useful for
analysing the data that is collected
during investigations
 Graphing is one of the most
valuable tools used because
Why Graph
• it gives a visual display of the
relationship between two or more
variables
• shows which data points do not obey
the relationship
• gives an indication at which point a
relationship ceases to be true
• used to determine the constants in an
equation relating two variables
 You need to be able to give a
qualitative physical interpretation
of a particular graph
 e.g. as the potential difference
increases, the ionization current
also increases until it reaches a
maximum at…..
Plotting Graphs
 Independent variables are plotted
on the x-axis
 Dependent variables are plotted on
the y-axis
 Most graphs occur in the 1st
quadrant however some may
appear in all 4
Plotting Graphs - Choice of
Axis
 When you are asked to plot a
graph of a against b, the first
variable mentioned is plotted on
the y axis
 Graphs should be plotted by hand
Plotting Graphs - Scales
 Size of graph should be large, to fill
as much space as possible
 choose a convenient scale that is
easily subdivided
Plotting Graphs - Labels
 Each axis is labeled with the name
and symbol, as well as the relevant
unit used
 The graph should also be given a
descriptive title
Plotting Graphs - Line of
Best Fit
 When choosing the line or curve it is
best to use a transparent ruler
 Position the ruler until it lies along an
ideal line
 The line or curve does not have to pass
through every point
 Do not assume that all lines should pass
through the origin
 Do not do dot to dot!
y

x
Analysing the Graph
 Often a relationship between variables
will first produce a parabola, hyperbole
or an exponential growth or decay.
These can be transformed to a straight
line relationship
 General equation for a straight line is
 y = mx + c
– y is the dependent variable, x is the independent
variable, m is the gradient and c is the y-
intercept
 The parameters of a function can
also be obtained from the slope
(m) and the intercept (c) of a
straight line graph
Gradients
 Gradient = vertical run / horizontal run

 or gradient = y / x

 uphillslope is positive and downhill

slope is negative
 Don´t forget to give the units of the
gradient
Areas under Graphs
 The area under a graph is a useful
tool
 e.g. on a force displacement graph
the area is work (N x m = J)
 e.g. on a speed time graph the area
is distance (ms-1 x s = m)
 Again, don´t forget the units of the
area
 Standard Graphs - linear
graphs
A straight line passing through the
origin shows proportionality
y yx

k = rise/run y=kx

Where k is the constant

of proportionality
x
 Standard Graphs -
parabola
A parabola shows that y is directly
proportional to x2
y y

x x2
i.e. y  x2 or y = kx2
where k is the constant of proportionality
 Standard Graphs -
hyperbola
A hyperbola shows that y is
inversely proportional to x
y y

x 1/x
i.e. y  1/x or y = k/x
where k is the constant of proportionality
 Standard Graphs -
hyperbola again
 An inverse square law graph is also
a hyperbola
y y

x 1/x2
i.e. y  1/x2 or y = k/x2
where k is the constant of proportionality
 Non-Standard Graphs
 You need to make a connection
between graphs and equations
y If this is a graph of r against t2
plotted from data having an expected
relationship r = at2/2 +r0 where a is a
constant
x
Then the gradient is a/2 and the y-intercept
is r0 - it is not the case that r  t2, it is a linear
relationship
The intercept is therefore important too