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> The other quibble has to do with the idea of "expected results." I
> have a running battle with our chemistry teachers who seem to have
> the idea that their students can do error analysis in their labs by
> simply calculating the difference between the answers they obtain and
> the "correct" answer--that is, the answer in the text. This is to
> error analysis as "paint by numbers" is to art.
I believe that when measuring a known quantity, where there exists a
nominally correct value, that calculating per cent error is a legitimate
part of the error analysis. It provides a good quick reality check on what
you are measuring and can often quickly reveal calculational mistakes.
I hasten to add that this isn't and should never be the complete error
analysis!