Data and Measurements

Folks worked on different aspects of data collection and presentation today, building towards using these techniques to process information about motion (our next unit of study).

Introductory Physics reviewed their homework on the scientific method, then hurled themselves into the area of unit conversion. The process of dimensional analysis can be used in a variety of ways, only one of which is unit conversion. Whereas some people might find it time consuming, when moving a decimal place can quickly be used to convert, let's say, meters into kilometers, the technique allows for opportunities to self-check and is applicable for values that are not rooted in a base-10 relationship. We looked at one- and two-step conversions in class and people having difficulty should check out the video from a couple of days ago for more instruction and examples. Everyone needs to be very, very good at making unit conversions since information in problems is often given in units that can't be used directly in solving the problems. For instance, you can't use a mass in grams to perform a force calculation if you want your answer in Newtons (the SI unit for force). If you find you have continued problems in this area, see me for extra help or additional practice problems to work. Tomorrow, we'll start to look at graphs and how they are used to display and evaluate data.

Physics and Honors Physics worked through the use of tables and graphs to present and analyze data. Depending on the nature of the information, one tool may be more or less relevant than the other, and it is common that both are used when working with data. We'll use graphs and their corresponding equations frequently in class and lab to look at physical relationships, so nail down how to interpret graphs and work with equations from graphs to better understand physical systems. As a reminder, those slopes and proportionality constants have units that identify them, so pay attention to these when working with graphs and equations. Frequently, there is valuable information to be determined and you don't want to miss it...