Units

and
Measurement

Physics
Mrs. Coyle
International Space Station
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0706/iss_sts117_big.jpg

It All Starts with a Ruler!!!

Math and Units

Math- the language of Physics
SI Units International System
MKS
Meter m
Mass kg
Time s
National Bureau of Standards
Prefixes

SI Unit Prefixes - Part I

Name

Symbol

Factor

tera-

1012

giga-

109

mega-

106

kilo-

103

hecto-

102

deka-

da

101

SI Unit Prefixes- Part II

Name

Symbol

Factor

deci-

10-1

centi-

10-2

milli-

10-3

micro-

10-6

nano-

10-9

pico-

10-12

femto-

10-15

The Seven Base SI Units

Quantity
Unit
Symbol
Length

meter

Mass

kilogram

kg

Temperature

kelvin

Time

second

Amount of
mole
Substance
Luminous Intensity candela

mol

Electric Current

ampere

cd

Derived SI Units (examples)

Quantity

unit

Symbol

Volume

cubic meter

m3

Density
Speed

kilograms per
kg/m3
cubic meter
meter per second m/s

Newton

kg m/ s2

Energy

Joule (kg m2/s2)

Pressure

Pascal (kg/(ms2)

Pa

SI Unit Prefixes for Length

Name
gigameter
megameter
kilometer
decimeter
centimeter
millimeter
micrometer
nanometer
picometer

Symbol
Gm
Mm
km
dm
cm
mm
m
nm
pm

Analogy
109
106
103
10-1
10-2
10-3
10-6
10-9
10-12

Scientific Notation

M x 10n
M is the coefficient 1<M<10
10 is the base
n is the exponent or power of 10

Other Examples:
5.45E+6
5.45 x 10^6

or

Numbers less than 1 will have a

negative exponent.
A millionth of a second is:
0.000001 sec
1.0E-6

1x10-6
1.0^-6

Factor-Label Method of Unit

Conversion
Example: Convert 5km to m:
Multiply the original measurement by a
conversion factor.
NEW UNIT
85km x 1,000m
1km
OLD UNIT

85,000m

Factor-Label Method of Unit

Conversion: Example
Example: Convert 789m to km:
789m x 1km =0.789km= 7.89x10-1km
1000m

Convert 75.00 km/h to m/s

75.00 km x 1000 m x 1 h___ = 20.83m/s
h
1 km
3600 s

Limits of Measurement
Accuracy and Precision

 Accuracy - a measure of how

close a measurement is to the
true value of the quantity being
measured.

Example: Accuracy
Who is more accurate when
measuring a book that has a true
length of 17.0cm?
Susan:
17.0cm, 16.0cm, 18.0cm, 15.0cm
Amy:
15.5cm, 15.0cm, 15.2cm, 15.3cm

 Precision a measure of how

close a series of measurements
are to one another. A measure of
how exact a measurement is.

Example: Precision
Who is more precise when measuring
the same 17.0cm book?
Susan:
17.0cm, 16.0cm, 18.0cm, 15.0cm
Amy:
15.5cm, 15.0cm, 15.2cm, 15.3cm

Example: Evaluate whether the

following are precise, accurate or
both.

Accurate

Not Accurate Accurate

Not Precise Precise

Precise

Significant Figures
The significant figures in a
measurement include all of the
digits that are known, plus one
last digit that is estimated.

Centimeters and Millimeters

Finding the Number of Sig Figs:

When the decimal is present, start counting
from the left.
When the decimal is absent, start counting
from the right.
Zeroes encountered before a non zero digit
do not count.

How many sig figs?

100

10302.00

0.001
10302

1.0302x104

Sig Figs in Addition/Subtraction

Express the result with the same
number of decimal places as the
number in the operation with the least
decimal places.
Ex: 2.33 cm
+ 3.0 cm
5.3 cm
(Result is rounded to one decimal place)

Sig Figs in Multiplication/Division

Express the answer with the same sig
figs as the factor with the least sig
figs.
Ex: 3.22 cm
x 2.0 cm
6.4 cm2
(Result is rounded to two sig figs)

Counting Numbers
Counting numbers have infinite sig
figs.
Ex: 3 apples

Solving Word Problems

Analyze
List knowns and unknowns.
Draw a diagram.
Devise a plan.
Write the math equation to be used.
Calculate
If needed, rearrange the equation to solve for the
unknown.
Substitute the knowns with units in the equation and
express the answer with units.
Evaluate
Is the answer reasonable?