An electronic balance with a resolution of is used to weigh the same coin five times

PHYSICS · Multi-part · Fermi University Physics · Scientific Practice & Experimental Methods · Quantities, units and the practice of measurement · Uncertainty in measurement

Measurement and Method, Ch Repeated readings: scatter, the mean and the standard error

Problem

An electronic balance with a resolution of

0.01\,\mathrm{g}

is used to weigh the same coin five times, giving the readings (g):

2.53,\ 2.55,\ 2.54,\ 2.56,\ 2.52

. ((a)) Calculate the mean mass

\bar x

and the sample standard deviation

s

of the five readings. ((b)) Calculate the standard error of the mean,

\sigma_{\bar x}

. ((c)) State the bound you would assign to a single weighing, using the balance's resolution alone.

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