Significant figures

有效数字
 CHEMISTRY & YOU

How do you measure a photo finish?

Sprint times are often
measured to the nearest
hundredth of a second
(0.01 s). Chemistry also
requires making accurate
and often very small
measurements.

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 measurements
A measurement is a quantity that has
both a number and a unit.

Your height (66 inches), your age

(15 years), and your body
temperature (37°C) are examples
of measurements.
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 Scientific Notation
 In scientific notation, a given number
is written as the product of two
numbers: a coefficient and 10 raised to
a power.

For example, the number

602,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 can
be written in scientific notation as
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6.02 x 1023.
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 Scientific Notation
(w) In scientific notation, the coefficient is
always a number greater than or equal to one
and less than ten. The exponent is an integer.
 This is an exact definition. People often don’t follow it exactly.
 Someone may write 60.2x1022…. But technically, they shouldn’t.

A positive exponent indicates how many times the

coefficient must be multiplied by 10.

A negative exponent indicates how many times the

coefficient must be divided by 10.
 Scientific Notation
When writing numbers greater than ten in
scientific notation, the exponent is positive and
equals the number of places that the original
decimal point has been moved to the left.

6,300,000. = 6.3 x 106

94,700. = 9.47 x 104

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 Scientific Notation
Numbers less than one have a negative exponent
when written in scientific notation. The value of
the exponent equals the number of places the
decimal has been moved to the right.

0.000 008 = 8 x 10–6

0.00736 = 7.36 x 10–3

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 Scientific Notation
Multiplication and Division
To multiply numbers written in scientific
notation, multiply the coefficients and add the
exponents.

(3 x 104) x (2 x 102) = (3 x 2) x 104+2 = 6 x 106

(2.1 x 103) x (4.0 x 10–7) = (2.1 x 4.0) x 103+(–7) = 8.4 x 10–4

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 Scientific Notation
Multiplication and Division
To divide numbers written in scientific notation,
divide the coefficients and subtract the exponent
in the denominator from the exponent in the
numerator.

3.0 x 105 =
2
6.0 x 10 ( 6.0 )
3.0 x 105–2 = 0.5 x 103 = 5.0 x 102

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 Scientific Notation
Addition and Subtraction
For example, when adding 5.4 x 103 and 8.0
x 102, first rewrite the second number so
that the exponent is a 3. Then add the
numbers.
(5.4 x 103) + (8.0 x 102) = (5.4 x 103) + (0.80 x 103)
= (5.4 + 0.80) x 103
= 6.2 x 103

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 Sample Problem 3.1

Using Scientific Notation

Solve each problem and express the answer in
scientific notation.
a. (8.0 x 10–2) x (7.0 x 10–5)
b. (7.1 x 10–2) + (5 x 10–3)

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 Accuracy, Precision, and
Accuracy and Precision Error

 In chemistry, the meanings of accuracy and

precision are quite different.

 (w)Accuracy is a measure of how close a

measurement comes to the actual or true
value of whatever is measured.

 (w)Precision is a measure of how close a

series of measurements are to one another,
irrespective of the actual value.
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 Accuracy, Precision,
and Error

Accuracy and Precision (know this)

To evaluate the accuracy of a
measurement, the measured value
must be compared to the correct
value. To evaluate the precision of a
measurement, you must compare the
values of two or more repeated
measurements.
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 Accuracy, Precision,
and Error
Accuracy and Precision
Darts on a dartboard illustrate the difference
between accuracy and precision. (know this)

Good Accuracy, Poor Accuracy, Poor Accuracy, Poor

Good Precision Good Precision Precision

The closeness of a dart to the bull’s-eye corresponds to the

degree of accuracy. The closeness of several darts to one another
corresponds to the degree of precision.
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 Accuracy, Precision,
and Error

Determining Error
 Suppose you use a thermometer to measure
the boiling point of pure water at standard
pressure.

 The thermometer reads 99.1°C.

 You probably know that the true or accepted

value of the boiling point of pure water at
these conditions is actually 100.0°C.

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 Accuracy, Precision,
and Error
Determining Error 误差
 There is a difference between the accepted
value, which is the correct value for the
measurement based on reliable references, and
the experimental value, the value measured in
the lab.

 The difference between the experimental value

and the accepted value is called the error.

(w) Error = experimental value – accepted value

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 Accuracy, Precision,
and Error

Determining Error
 Error can be positive or negative,
depending on whether the
experimental value is greater than or
less than the accepted value.

 For the boiling-point measurement,

the error is 99.1°C – 100°C, or –
0.9°C.
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 Accuracy, Precision,
and Error
Determining Error
 Often, it is useful to calculate the relative error, or
percent error, in addition to the magnitude of the
error.

 (w) The percent error 百分误差of a

measurement is the absolute value of the error
divided by the accepted value, multiplied by 100%.
error x
Percent error = 100%
accepted value
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 Sample Problem 3.2

For the boiling-point measurement，percent error is

|experimental value – accepted value|

_______________________________
Percent error = X 100%
accepted value

|99.1°C – 100.0°C|
= X 100%
100.0°C

0.9°C
_______
= X 100 % = 0.9%
100.0°C

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 Significant
• You can easily read the temperature on
this thermometer to the nearest degree. Figures
• Suppose you estimate that the
temperature lies between 22°C and
23°C, at 22.5°C.
• The first two digits (2 and 2) are known
with certainty, while the rightmost
digit (5) has been estimated and
involves some uncertainty.
• These reported digits all convey useful
information, however, and are called
significant figures 有效数字.

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

Measurements must always be reported to

the correct number of significant figures
because calculated answers often depend on
the number of significant figures in the
values used in the calculation.
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 Significant Figures
 Instruments differ in the
number of significant (know this very well)
figures that can be
obtained from their use
and thus in the precision
of measurements.

 A meter stick calibrated

in 0.1-m intervals is more
precise than one
calibrated in a 1-m
interval.
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 Significant numbers
 ☼ All non-zero digits (1,2,3,4…) are significant.
 ☼ Zeroes between non-zero digits are significant.
 ☼ Zeroes to the left of the first non-zero digit are
not significant. (because they can be move with
scientific notation)
 ☼ Zeroes to the right of the last non-zero digit are
significant if there is a decimal point present, but
not significant if there is no decimal point. (IB
doesn’t follow this 100% exactly.)
Each of these measurements has three significant figures:
7.13 7.03 0.713 7.00× 108
0.703 0.0730 0.000700 1.08 × 10-9
 Learning Check
A. Which answers contain 3 significant figures?
1) 0.4760 2) 0.00476 3) 4760.
B. All the zeros are significant in
1) 0.00307 2) 25.300 3) 0.2050
 Counting Significant Figures
Number of Significant Figures
65.6 ___
122.55 ___
0.0042 ____
0.702 ____
0.00405 ____
25 000 ____
200. ____
 Counting Significant Figures
Number of Significant Figures
65.6 _ 3_
122.55 __5_
0.0042 __2__
0.702 __3_
0.00405 __3__
25 000 _2__
200. _3__
 Significant Numbers in
Calculations
(Write all)
 Two special situations have an unlimited number
of significant figures (they are exact numbers):
 1. Counted items

23 people, or 425 bags

 2. Exactly defined quantities

60 minutes = 1 hour
 Rounding Calculated Answers
 Rounding 四舍五入
 Decide how many significant figures are
needed
 Round to that many digits, counting from
the left
 Is the next digit less than 5? Drop it.
 Next digit 5 or greater? Increase by 1
• 3.016 rounded to hundredths is 3.02
• 3.013 rounded to hundredths is 3.01
Adding and Subtracting
Multiplying and Dividing

A great referencing page

 Learning Check

In each calculation, round the answer to the

correct number of significant figures.
A. 235.05 + 19.6 + 2.1 =
1) 256.75 2) 256.8 3) 257

B. 58.925 - 18.2 =
1) 40.725 2) 40.73 3) 40.7
 Learning Check

A. 2.19 × 4.2 =
1) 9 2) 9.2 3) 9.198

B. 4.311 ÷ 0.07 =
1) 61.58 2) 62 3) 60

C. 2.54 × 0.0028 =
0.0105 × 0.060
1) 11.3 2) 11 3) 0.041
 (w) Carry 1 more significant figure than needed
throughout the calculations, and only round off
the final answer.

 IB doesn’t follow this exactly, as a simplification,

not because it is correct.
 The significant figures worksheet is due at the
beginning of next class.