PHYS 170 - M07L

Measurements of Length, Mass and Time Lab Report

October 5, 2015

General Physics I Laboratory

Mr. Chad Andrade

Measurements of Length, Mass and Time

Objective
The objective of this lab was to make measurements of mass, length, density, and time for

various objects and processes through the appropriate use of different measuring instruments.

Theory

Physics is a science that is based largely on our observations of the world around us.

Quantifying these observations allows us to not only provide unbiased descriptions of various

objects, but also test physical theories and ideas, thus broadening our knowledge of the physical

universe.

There are several tools that can be used to make measurements of various quantities, with

varying degrees of accuracy (Carpi, 2000). Thus, it becomes necessary to indicate the accuracy

of the measurement tool being used, the uncertainty in all measurements made, and the

propagation of uncertainty, as calculations are made based on the measured quantities.

In order to calculate the % error when measuring the densities of the different objects, the

following formula was used:

(|Observed Value – Accepted Value| / Accepted Value ) * 100

Equipment

● Block of unknown material

● Wooden cylinder

● Metal sphere
Vernier Caliper (coleparmer.com)
● Bob on a string

● Triple Beam Balance

● Vernier Caliper
● Timer
Triple Beam Balance (coleparmer.com)
● Ruler

Ruler (coleparmer.com)

Procedure

First, a ruler was used to measure the length, width and depth, in centimeters, of the block

made of an unknown substance. The measurements were then recorded with the appropriate

error in table 5.1. This process was repeated five times, and then the averages of the five

measurements of length, width, and depth, were calculated and recorded. The error calculated

using the meter rule is half of the smallest measurement possible with the device, which was

found to be ± 0.05cm.

Next, a Vernier Caliper was used to measure the diameter and length of a wooden

cylinder, in centimeters. The caliper was used to measure the length and diameter of the cylinder

at various locations along the cylinder’s body, in order to get a proper average estimate. This

process was repeated five times, and then the averages of the five measurements of diameter and

length were calculated and recorded. The results were recorded in table 5.2, along with the

appropriate error. The cylinder did not have a smooth body, which led to a greater degree of

variation in measurements of length and diameter. The error calculated using the Vernier Caliper

is half of the smallest measurement possible with the device, which equates to +/- 0.005cm.

Afterwards, the volume of the wooden cylinder was computed based on the measurements, and

the % error calculated.

Next, a Vernier Caliper was used to measure the diameter of a metal sphere, in

centimeters. This process was repeated five times, and then the average of the five measurements
of diameter was calculated and recorded. Each measurement took place on a different location on

the sphere’s body, in order to get a proper average estimate. The results of these measurements

were recorded in table 5.3, along with the appropriate error. Afterwards, the volume of the metal

sphere was computed based on the measurements, and the % error calculated.

Afterwards, a triple beam balance was used to measure the mass of the cylinder, block,

and sphere, in grams. This process was repeated five times for each of the objects, and the

average of the five mass measurements for each of the objects was then calculated and recorded.

Given that the sphere had a tendency to roll off the triple beam balance scale, it was

necessary to use a wooden pad with a hole in the middle in order to allow the sphere to stay still

on the triple beam balance.

The mass of the wooden pad was systematically corrected for by first placing it on the

triple beam balance and measuring its mass. The sphere was then placed on the pad, and the

mass of the pad was subtracted from the total mass of the pad and the sphere. For each of the five

times the sphere’s mass was measured, the mass of the wooden pad was measured and then

subtracted from the total mass.

Afterwards, the volume and densities of the block, sphere, and wooden cylinder were

calculated using the averages of the five measurements of each for density, and the results

recorded.

Next, a bob attached to a string was raised to an arbitrary height, and then released. The

time it took to complete one oscillation, in seconds, was then recorded, along with the error. This

measurement was repeated five times. The average of the five mass measurements for each of

the objects was then calculated and recorded.

it took to complete 20 full oscillations, in seconds, was then recorded. This measurement was

repeated five times, and the average recorded.

Afterwards, the period was calculated and recorded using the average value from the 1-

swing measurements, and the average value from the 20-swing measurements. The densities of

the block, sphere, and cylinder were then calculated, and compared to accepted values of

densities. Based on the measured values and the accepted values, the % error was then calculated

and recorded.
Calculations

Calculating Error in Measuring Instruments

The absolute error of a measuring tool was found by halving the smallest possible measurement

made by the instrument. For a ruler, the error was:

0.1cm
= 0.05cm
2

Therefore, the error in the ruler measurement was ± 0.05 cm.

The error in measurements made with the caliper was found to be ± 0.005cm, the error in

measurements made with the triple beam balance was found to be ± 0.05g, and the error in

measurements made with the stop-watch was found to be ± 0.005s.

Calculating the Propagation of Uncertainty

When quantities were being multiplied or divided, the error, ∆A was

determined by multiplying

∆A = A (∆B/B + ∆C/C)

When quantities were being added or subtracted, the error, ∆A was

determined by adding the uncertainties of each of the addends:

∆A = ∆B + ∆C

When a quantity was being multiplied by a constant, the uncertainty of the product was found by

multiplying the constant by the uncertainty of the multiplicand:

∆A = k∆B
When quantities were raised to the power of n, the uncertainty associated with the result is found

by multiplying the absolute value of n by the relative error of the quantity:

∆A = |n| * (∆B) / (B)

Calculating Average Values

The above formula was used to calculate average value, where A is the average value and n is

the number of elements in the average value computation.

Average length of block:

(2.4 ± 0.05 cm) + (2.5 ± 0.05 cm) + (2.4 ± 0.05 cm) + (2.4 ± 0.05 cm) + (2.4 ± 0.05cm) = 2.4 ± 0.05 cm

The above calculation for average value was used for averaging all other measurements made

using measuring instruments, including the measurements of the wooden cylinder with the meter

caliper, the measurements of a metal sphere with a Vernier caliper, the mass measurements of

each object using the triple beam balance, and the time durations of the swings of the bob,

measured using a stopwatch.

The average value of the width and depth of the block were both found to be 2.4 ± 0.05 cm, the

average value of the diameter and length of the cylinder were found to be 1.56 ± 0.005 cm and

10.10 ± 0.005 cm, respectively, and the average value of the diameter of the metal sphere was

found to be 1.55 ± 0.005 cm. The average value of the mass of the block, cylinder and sphere,

were found to be 17.2 ± 0.05 cm, 14.7 ± 0.05 cm, and 16.5 ± 0.05 cm, respectively. The average
values of the times for 1 swing and 20 swing were found to be 1.67 ± 0.005 s, and 34.08 ± 0.005

s, respectively.

Calculating Volume of the Block

The formula for the volume of a cube is as follow:

V=l*w*d

where l is the length, w is the width and d is the depth of the cube. The measurements of each

side of the cube might not be the same, given the uncertainty inherent in the measuring

instrument and the minute variation in the length on each face of the cube. For this reason, the

above formula was a better option than simply cubing one of the side length measurements.

Based on the computed average values, the volume of the block in the experiments was

computed to be

(2.4 ± 0.05 cm) * (2.4 ± 0.05 cm) * (2.4 ± 0.05 cm) = 14 ± 0.06 cm3

Calculating Volume of the Cylinder

The volume of the wooden cylinder was calculated using the following formula:

Where r is the radius, and h is the height of the cylinder. Based on the average values, the

volume of the wooden cylinder was found to be

(π) (1.56/2 ± 0.005 cm)² (10.10 ± 0.005 cm) = 19.3 ± 0.11 cm3

Calculating the Volume of the Sphere

The volume of the sphere was calculated using the following formula:
Where r is the radius of the sphere. Based on the average values, the volume of the sphere was

found to be

(4/3) (π) (1.55/2 ± 0.005 cm)3 = (1.95 ± 0.006 cm3)

Calculating Period from 1 Swing

The period based on the one-swing measurements is simply the average value of the

measurements, which was found to be 1.67 ± 0.005 s.

Calculating Period from 20 Swings

The period based on the 20-swing calculations was found by dividing the average time for 20

swings by 20:

(34.08 ± 0.005 s) / (20) = 1.704 ± 0.005 s

Calculating Density

The density of the various objects was found according to the following formula:

D = (m) / (v)

Where m is mass in grams, and v is volume in cm3.

The density of the block was found to be

D = (17.2 ± 0.05 g) / (14 ± 0.58 cm3)

= 1.2 ± 0.05 g/cm3.

D = (14.7 ± 0.05 g) / (19.3 ± 0.07 cm3)

= 0.762 ± 0.005 g/cm3.

The density of the sphere was found to be

D = (16.5 ± 0.05 g) / (1.95 ± 0.006 cm3)

= 8.46 ± 0.002 g/cm3.

Calculating % Error

The % error calculations were made according to the following formula:

be 3.33%, the error in the density calculation for the cylinder’s was found to be 2.56%, and the

error in the density calculation for the sphere was found to be 1.19%.

Discussions

According to the percent error obtained in the density calculation, the measurements were

fairly accurate, as the results were close to the expected values.

During the measurement of the length, width, and depth of the block, sources of error

consisted primarily of the rough body of the block, given that it was uneven in several different

places. For this reason, a different position on the block had to be assume each time the Vernier

Caliper was used to measure it’s length. In order to reduce the error here, we could potentially
perform more measurements using more precise measuring tools, such as a digital Vernier

Caliper, and then average the several measurements to give us a better idea of the average

dimension.

During the measurement of the diameter of the wooden cylinder, it was important to

measure using the Vernier Caliper at several different, spaced out locations along the length of

the cylinder. This was due to the fact that the cylinder had various grooves, bumps and

indentations along its body, which provided an extremely uneven measuring sample. Without

using a more precise Vernier Caliper, or a smoother measuring sample, more measurements

along the length of the cylinder would have led to the most accurate representation of the

diameter of the cylinder.

During the measurements of time for the bob’s oscillations, the biggest source of error

was that the bob was held from arbitrarily set point before being released. The researcher simply

had to assume that the bob was being released from the same point as the previous trials. This

portion of the lab could have been improved if the researcher had measured the distance between

the bob and the pole, or some fixed point, and used that distance as a reference point for each

subsequent trial. It was found that the time for 20 swings provided a much more accurate

representation of the time for 1 individual swing, as there was less room for error when

calculating the time it took for one individual swing.

Possible methods for improving the experiment include the use of more precise

measuring tools for length and mass, which may include an electronic caliper, and an electronic

scale. The wooden and plastic calipers that were provided for measuring length had their

limitations, not only in terms of uncertainty, but also in terms of the physical build of the
measuring device. Additionally, measuring several more times would have led to a result with

considerably low uncertainty.

Conclusion

In this laboratory exercise, we made various physical measurements, from which we

calculated other physical quantities. It was necessary to keep track of the precision of the

measuring tools, as each of the measuring instruments had varying degrees of precision and

accuracy. It was also necessary to record the precision of the measurements, as the uncertainties

in singular measurements propagate further into all quantities calculated using those

measurements.
 Works Cited

Carpi, A. (2000). The Metric System: Metric and Scientific Notation. Retrieved September 28,

2015.