2006-09-18 12:50:37 · 2 answers · asked by kaldo s 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Homework Help
Significant figures are how accurate your measurements are. For example, on the average ruler, you can probably only get a few significant figures. You can probably measure 10.1 inches. You can't determine 10.1234653 inches.
If you don't keep track of significant figures, you won't know how much to trust your answer.
2006-09-18 12:52:14 · answer #1 · answered by nondescript 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It is important to keep track of the sig figs in a calculation, and a calculator can't do all the work. You have two competing goals:
To compute as exactly as possible.
To be truthful about the limitations of your input data
Example: Suppose that you measure the length of a particular table in two steps. You first measure with a meter stick that the distance from one end of the table to a particular mark is 0.95 meters. Then you use a more precise ruler to determine that the distance from the mark to the other end of the table is 0.0153 meters. You would then think that the length of the table is
0.95
+0.0153
---------
0.9653
MY LINK PROVIDES MORE DETAILS
2006-09-18 12:54:37 · answer #2 · answered by ezelljm 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋