CHEM-UA 125 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1.4: Significant Figures, Scientific Notation, Observational Error
6 Aug 2016
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Chapter 1- keys to the study of chemistry. 1. 5. 1 we can never measure a quantity exactly but we have a measured level of accuracy; every measurement involves some degree of uncertainty. The greater the number of digits in this measurement the larger the certainty. Estimate the rightmost digit of a measurement, we usually assume an uncertainty of the most right digit. Determining which digits are significant: all digits are significant except zeros used only to position the decimal poit. Make sure there is a decimal point then starting at the left move right until you reach the first nonzero digit. Count from the first nonzero and to its right the digits are significant. If there is a decimal point and the zeros are before or after it, they are significant. If there is no decimal point then we assume that the zeros aren"t significant unless they are in scientific notation. Terminal decimals indicate that the zeros are significant.
