A measurement of 15.5 m has a relative error of 0.03. What is the absolute error
Practice Questions
Q1
A measurement of 15.5 m has a relative error of 0.03. What is the absolute error?
0.465 m
0.5 m
0.3 m
0.45 m
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
A measurement of 15.5 m has a relative error of 0.03. What is the absolute error?
Step 1: Understand what relative error means. It is a way to express how much error there is in a measurement compared to the size of the measurement itself.
Step 2: Identify the given values. The measured value is 15.5 m and the relative error is 0.03.
Step 3: Use the formula for absolute error. The formula is: Absolute error = Relative error * Measured value.
Step 4: Plug in the values into the formula. So, Absolute error = 0.03 * 15.5 m.
Step 5: Calculate the result. Multiply 0.03 by 15.5 to get 0.465 m.
Step 6: State the final answer. The absolute error is 0.465 m.
Relative Error – Relative error is the ratio of the absolute error to the measured value, often expressed as a decimal or percentage.
Absolute Error – Absolute error is the actual amount of error in a measurement, calculated by multiplying the relative error by the measured value.
Measurement Units – Understanding the importance of consistent units in calculations, especially when dealing with errors.