Chapter 1: Measuring, modelling and investigating
Units and measurement, uncertainty, the difference between a model and the thing it describes, and how to plan, record and evaluate an investigation.
The chapter problem
How fast does a dropped ball actually fall?. You will drop a ball and time it, then compare what you measured with what the simplest model predicts. By the end of the chapter you can say which parts of the difference are the model's fault and which are your measurement's.
Where it is used: Every experiment in the course, and the Physics In Practice Investigation.
Your turn to connect it: Where have you seen a number quoted as if it were exact, when it was really a measurement with a range?
Sections
- 1.1 Physical quantities and SI units — tier O · refs 1.1
- 1.2 Measuring, accuracy and uncertainty — tier O · refs 1.1
- 1.3 Scientific models and the Nature of Science — tier O · refs 1.1
- 1.4 Planning and evaluating an investigation — tier O · refs 1.6
- 1.5 Graphs, gradients and the language of data — tier O · refs 1.1, 1.4