Data analysis
Knowledge you need to have:
Knowledge that, when uncertainties in a single measurement are combined, an uncertainty can be ignored if it is less than one-third of one of the other uncertainties in the measurement.
Knowledge that, when uncertainties in measured values are combined, a fractional/percentage uncertainty in a measured value can be ignored if it is less than onethird of the fractional/percentage uncertainty in another measured value.
Correct use of the terms accuracy and precision in the context of an evaluation of experimental results. The accuracy of a measurement compares how close the measurement is to the ‘true’ or accepted value. The uncertainty in a measurement gives an indication of the precision of the measurement.
Skills you need to develop:
Combination of various types of uncertainties to obtain the total uncertainty in a measurement.
Combination of uncertainties in measured values to obtain the total uncertainty in a calculated value.
Use of error bars to represent absolute uncertainties on graphs.
Estimation of uncertainty in the gradient and intercept of the line of best fit on a graph.
Use of an appropriate relationship to determine the total uncertainty in a measured value.
Use of an appropriate relationship to determine the total uncertainty in a value calculated from the product or quotient of measured values.
Use of an appropriate relationship to determine the uncertainty in a value raised to a power.
