Physics Form 4 – Chapter 1
* A manipulated variable is the factor in an experiment that is changed by the experimenter. * A responding variable is the observed changes in an experiment by the experimenter. * A constant variable is the factor that is kept the same throughout the experiment by the experimenter. * A hypothesis is a statement or educated guess that explains the relationship between the manipulated and responding variable. * A physical quantity is any quantity that can be measured. * A base quantity is a physical quantity that cannot be derived from any other quantities ie. time, length, mass. * A derived quantity is a physical quantity that is derived from a combination of two or more base quantities. * A scalar quantity is a physical quantity that only has a magnitude/size ie. distance. * A vector quantity is a physical quantity that has both magnitude/size and direction ie. displacement. * Consistency of a measuring instrument is the ability of the instrument to produce readings with little or no deviation for the same physical quantity. * Accuracy of a measurement is the proximity of the reading to the actual value of the physical quantity measured. * Sensitivity of a measuring instrument is the ability of the instrument to detect small changes in the quantity being measured. A micrometer screw gauge can detect changes of 0.01mm and is therefore more sensitive than a vernier caliper that detects changes of 0.01cm. * Systematic errors occur due to the condition of the measuring instrument or the state of the environment in which measurements are taken ie. zero error. * Systematic errors are usually unavoidable and reproducible inaccuracies that are consistently in the same direction. * Random errors occur due to human limitations ie. parallax error. * Random errors are unavoidable because humans are not perfect and can occur in any direction. * Analyzing graphs require knowledge of mathematics...
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