Physics notes | Introduction: Laboratory & Measurement Unit

Introduction: Laboratory & Measurement
Unit: Laboratory & Measurement
Topics covered in this chapter:
The Scientific Method......................................................................... 15
Designing & Performing Experiments................................................. 18
Accuracy & Precision........................................................................... 23
Uncertainty & Error Analysis............................................................... 25
Keeping a Laboratory Notebook......................................................... 38
Formal Laboratory Reports................................................................. 45
The purpose of this chapter is to teach skills necessary for designing and
carrying out laboratory experiments, recording data, and writing summaries
of the experiment in different formats.
 Designing & Performing Experiments discusses strategies for coming up
with your own experiments and carrying them out.



 Accuracy & Precision, Uncertainty & Error Analysis, and Recording and
Analyzing Data discuss techniques for working with the measurements
taken during laboratory experiments.
 Keeping a Laboratory Notebook and Formal Laboratory Reports discuss
ways in which you might communicate (write up) your laboratory
experiments.
Calculating uncertainty (instead of relying on significant figures) is a new and
challenging skill that will be used in lab write-ups throughout the year.
Standards addressed in this chapter:
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS):
No NGSS standards are addressed in this chapter.
Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks (2006):
No MA curriculum frameworks are specifically addressed in this chapter.