Knox Academy Higher Physics

Errors and Uncertainties Homework.

11
Answer all questions.

1.
In an experiment the following 2.
measurements and uncertainties are In an experiment a quantity is measured
recorded. n times. The random uncertainty in the
quantity is determined by
Temperature rise = 10oC + 1oC
-
Heater current = 5.0A +- 0.2A

Heater voltage = 12.0V +- 0.5V

Time = 100s + 2s
-
Mass of liquid = 1.000kg + 0.005kg
-
The measurement which has the
greatest percentage uncertainty is the

A Temperature rise
B Heater current
C Heater voltage
D Time
E Mass of liquid
3. Marks
A student uses the apparatus shown to measure the avaerage acceleration of a trolley
travelling down a track.

The line on the trolley is aligned with the line P on the track
The trolley is released from rest and allowed to run down the track.
The timer measures the time for the card to pass through the light gate.
This procedure is repeated a number of times and the results shown below.

0.015s 0.013s 0.014s 0.019s 0.017s 0.018s

Calculate:

(a) The mean time for the card to pass through the light gate 1

(b) The approximate absolute random uncertainty in this value. 1

(2)

4. Marks
The results in the table below are from an experiment used to find the value of the
average speed of a trolley between two lines on a runway. The experiment was
repeated five times.
Distance between lines 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.1
(m)
Time (s) 9.1 9.4 9.8 9.5 9.3

(a) What is the average distance between the lines, and what is the
percentage error in this average? 2

(b) Calculate the average and percentage error of the time to travel
between the lines. (1.5) 2

(c) Calculate the average speed and the absolute error in the average
speed. 3
(7)