Name
Date
Class
Mathematics and Scientific Thinking
Understanding Main Ideas
Answer the following questions in the spaces provided.
1. When are estimates useful?
2. What is the difference between accuracy and precision?
Calculate the mean, median, mode, and range for the following data set: 14.9, 13.9, 13.9,
12.8, 11.7.
3. mean = __________________
4. median = __________________
5. mode = __________________
6. range = __________________
Building Vocabulary
Fill in the blank to complete the statement.
7. __________________ communicate how precise measurements are.
8. Sources of error may produce __________________ that do not fit
the data set.
9. The difference between the known value and its measured value is
called the __________________.
10. Approximations based on reasonable assumptions are called __________________.
Name
Date
Class
Mathematics and Scientific Thinking
Write the letter of the correct answer on the line at the left.
1. ___ A student on the archery team gets all
her arrows in the same spot on the target.
They are all outside the bull’s eye. Which
best describes her results?
A both accurate and precise
B precise but not accurate
C accurate but not precise
D neither precise nor accurate
3. ___ Which of the following shows the
mean with the correct number of
significant figures for the numbers 15.6,
14.1, 7.7, 12.9, 12.9?
A 12
B 12.6
C 12.64
D 12.7
2. ___ A student added the measurements
36.67 g and 4.1 g. Which of the following
expresses the sum with the correct
number of significant figures?
A 40.7 g
B 40.77 g
C 40.8 g
D 41 g
4. ___ A student calculated the density of tin
to be 7.20 g/mL. The actual density of tin
is 7.29 g/mL. Which of the following is his
percent error?
A 0.01 percent
B 0.09 percent
C 1.23 percent
D 1.25 percent
If the statement is true, write true. If the statement is false, change the underlined word
or words to make the statement true.
5. ____________________ An estimate is an approximation of a number based on
reasonable assumptions.
6. ____________________ Accuracy refers to how close a group of measurements are to
each other.
7. ____________________ The mean is the middle number in an ordered set of data.
8. ____________________ The median appears most often in a list of numbers.
9. ____________________ To find percent error, you subtract the true value from the
experimental value and divide by the true value.
10. ____________________ The anomalous data in a measurement include all digits
measured exactly, and one estimated digit.