Uncertainties

Understandings:

• Random and systematic errors
• Absolute, fractional and percentage uncertainties
• Error bars
• Uncertainty of gradient and intercepts

Applications and skills:

• Explaining how random and systematic errors can be identified and reduced
• Collecting data that include absolute and/or fractional uncertainties and stating these as an uncertainty range (expressed as: best estimate ± uncertainty range)
• Propagating uncertainties through calculations involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and raising to a power
• Determining the uncertainty in gradients and intercepts

Guidance:

• Analysis of uncertainties will not be expected for trigonometric or logarithmic functions in examinations
• Further guidance on how uncertainties, error bars and lines of best fit are used in examinations can be found in the Teacher support material