Chapter 02 Vocab.txt

The determination of the dimensions, capacity, quantity, or extent of something

Mass, volume, length, time, temperature, pressure, and concentration

A number that has a value with no uncertainty in it, that is, it is known exactly

A number that has a value with a degree of uncertainty in it

And indicator of how close a series of measurements on the same object are to each other

An indicator of how close a measurement (or the average of multiple measurements) comes to a true or excepted value

The most accurate currently known value for a measured quantity

A "constant" error associated with an experimental system itself

Error caused by uncontrollable variables in an experiment

The digits in any measurement that are known with certainty plus one digit that is uncertain

Zeros that occur at the start of a number, that is, zeros that precede all nonzero digits. Leading zeros are always to the left of the first nonzero digit and to the right of the decimal place. Leading zeros do not count as significant figures

Zeros between nonzero digits, such zeros always count as significant figures

Zeros at the end of a number. They are only significant if (A)- there is a decimal point present in the number. (B)- they carry overbars. Otherwise trailing zeros are not significant

The process of deleting unwanted or nonsignificant digits from a calculated number

A numerical system in which numbers are expressed in the form "A X 10n" where 'A' is a number with a single nonzero digit to the left of the decimal point and 'n' is a whole number. For example the scientific notation form of the number 703 is "7.03 X 10^2"

A number written as a superscript following another number and indicating how many times the first number, the base, is to be multiplied by itself

A single exponential value of the number 10

• When no other information aside the measurement is available standard operating procedure is to assume the largest of the uncertainties possible for the measurement.
• For example the measurement 5600 g has no decimal place shown therefore we can assume an estimate of plus or minus 100 grams

The process of deleting unwanted or nonsignificant digits from a calculated number

If the first digit to be dropped is a five not followed by any other digit or a five followed only by 0s, drop the five and any zeros that follow it and then increased the last retained digit by one unit if it is odd or leave the last retained digit the same if it is even