Marcus:
One need go no further than Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary.
Under precision, in the mathematical category, it provides the following
definition:
the degree to which the correctness of a quantity is expressed
Cf. accuracy (def. 3)
So, going to accuracy, definition 3, to make the recommended comparison, we
find:
the degree of correctness of a quantity, expression, etc.
1.70 EXPRESSES a greater degree of correctness than 1.7 (i.e., does so more
precisely). However, if it turns out to be an incorrect reading, relative to
the actual mass being measured, its ACTUAL degree of correctness (i.e.,
accuracy) is low.
I think you might want to entertain the possibility that the usage of the
terminology, in the University of Alberta's course materials, may be
incorrect.
Bill Potts, CMS
Roseville, CA
http://metric1.org [SI Navigator]
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On
> Behalf Of Ma Be
> Sent: July 16, 2001 09:36
> To: U.S. Metric Association
> Subject: [USMA:14418] Re: Rules of Thumb 6
>
>
> On Sun, 15 Jul 2001 20:16:18
> Bill Potts wrote:
> >Marcus Berger wrote:
> >> The zero correctly identifies the accuracy of the value that is
> >> supposed to be reported.
> >
> >Precision, not accuracy. If that person is really, for example,
> 1.92 m tall,
> >then 1.70 is hardly accurate.
> >...
> I'm sorry, Bill, but I don't think so! I do understand what you
> mean though.
>
> In our course at the U of A (University of Alberta) dealing with
> this subject of measurements in the third year of engineering,
> that's the technical term that is used all the time to mean the
> decimal place with which instruments would measure certain
> physical properties. There is even a diagram that is used to
> illustrate the concept in which "precision" is associated with
> what you mean here, indeed, but not with the number of decimal
> places a measurement is reported as. I could try to fetch that
> material for you later on (once I have the chance to go there
> sometime in the next few days).
>
> Marcus
>
>
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