Propagation of Error

. . . and all about error

What is error (a.k.a. “uncertainties”)?
Error is a deviation in measured value from true value.

True value of the measurement

Error in that measurement

What is error (a.k.a. “uncertainties”)?

We notate error by

For example, if we measured a distance, y, of 5mm with an error of 0.5mm, we

would write
Common Types of Errors
● Precision Error: Error due to limited precision of the measuring instrument.
As a rule of thumb, a precision error is taken to be half the smallest unit that
the instrument is capable of measuring. E.g. A meter stick can’t measure
anything less than . So the error in distances measured using a meter stick
can be taken to be .

● Human Error: Error due to difference between “perceived” measured value

and true value. E.g. a stopwatch time measurement will have error due to
human reaction delays. The size of this error depends on the circumstances
of the measurement. Need to make an educated guess when estimating the
numerical value this error.
Propagation of Error
Imagine we have some variable f which depends on x. If x has some error, then
how will that error affect f?
f

x
Propagation of Error
Imagine we have some variable f which depends on x. If x has some error, then
how will that error affect f?
f

x
x1
Propagation of Error
Imagine we have some variable f which depends on x. If x has some error, then
how will that error affect f?
f

f(x1)

x
x1
Propagation of Error
Imagine we have some variable f which depends on x. If x has some error, then
how will that error affect f?
f
This new error is

𝛿𝑓
f(x1)

x
x1
Propagation of Error
How can we calculate the error in f due to x?
Propagation of Error
How can we calculate the error in f due to x?
𝛿𝑓

𝛿𝑥
Propagation of Error

How can we calculate the error in f due to x?

𝛿𝑓

For example: 𝛿𝑥
Propagation of Error

How can we calculate the error in f due to x?

𝛿𝑓

For example: 𝛿𝑥

and
Propagation of Error
What if we have >1 variables? Ie. f(x,y,.......,z)

What are these?

Propagation of Error
What if we have >1 variables? Ie. f(x,y,.......,z)

What are these?

Partial Derivatives work the same as regular derivatives except

you pretend every variable is a constant except for “x”.

So they are even easier!

Estimating error in slope of a best fit line

Let be the slope of the best fit

line.
Estimating error in slope of a best fit line

Let be the slope of the best fit

line. To estimate the error in ,
draw two other lines that over-
and under-estimate the slope,
while still fitting within all the
error bars.
Estimating error in slope of a best fit line

Let be the slope of the best fit

line. To estimate the error in ,
draw two other lines that over-
and under-estimate the slope,
while still fitting within all the
error bars.
Estimating error in slope of a best fit line

Let be the slope of the best fit

line. To estimate the error in ,
draw two other lines that over-
and under-estimate the slope,
while still fitting within all the
error bars.
Estimating error in slope of a best fit line

Then, estimate the slope

error as

𝑎 𝑚𝑎𝑥 − 𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑛
𝛿 𝑎=
2

𝛿𝑎

𝑎 𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝑎 𝑎 𝑚𝑎𝑥

where and are the slopes of the two lines that over- and under-estimate the slope of the
best fit.
What I expect
1. For your quantity of interest, you will propagate the error in the variable which
contributes most to the error.

Super reasonable question: “How do we know which variable contributes most to

the error without actually calculating it?”
What I expect
1. For your quantity of interest, you will propagate the error in the variable
which contributes most to the error.

Super reasonable question: “How do we know which variable contributes most to

the error without actually calculating it?”

Answer: You don’t. You will have to reasonably guess and justify your choice!
What I expect
1. For your quantity of interest, you will propagate the error in the variable
which contributes most to the error.

Super reasonable question: “How do we know which variable contributes most to

the error without actually calculating it?”

Answer: You don’t. You will have to reasonably guess and justify your choice!

Example: If you have a quantity that depends on three variables which have
errors , and you’ve determined that variable contributes most to the error, then
What I expect
1. For your quantity of interest, you will propagate the error in the variable which
contributes most to the error.
2. For all values that you directly measure, you should also record the error
associated with the measurement
What I expect

1. For your quantity of interest, you will propagate the error in the variable which
contributes most to the error.
2. For all values that you directly measure, you should also record the error
associated with the measurement.

Example: Lets say that you’ve performed an experiment in which you measured
distance () using a meterstick and time () using a stopwatch. Then you need to
state the values of the uncertainties and .
What I expect

1. For your quantity of interest, you will propagate the error in the variable which
contributes most to the error.
2. For all values that you directly measure, you should also record the error
associated with the measurement.
3. Include error bars in all your plots. Error bars encapsulate the error in each
data point.