Numbers of Any Magnitude, SMB-005

A puppy's weight is measured at 5.2 kilograms, to the nearest 100 grams.

Calculate the percentage error in this measurement, correct to one significant figure? (3 marks)

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`1%`

Show Worked Solution

`text{Using 1 kilogram = 1000 grams}`

`=>\ text{5.2 kilograms = 5200 grams}`

`text{Absolute error}\ =1/2 xx text{precision}\ = 1/2 xx 100 = 50\ text{g}`

`text{% error}`	`=\ frac{text{absolute error}}{text{measurement}} xx 100%`
	`=50/5200 xx 100%`
	`=0.961… %`
	`=1%\ text{(to 1 sig. fig.)}`

TIP: Convert all measurements to either grams or kilograms before applying formula.