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Outline
Variation
Significant Figures
Accuracy
Precision
Data representation
Numerical data
Why is it important to use numerical
representation? Is it always good?
How to represent numbers?
Use the number with proper number of
significant digits with appropriate
dimensions (units)
Caution on dimensionless numbers
Statistics in Engineering
As engineers perform experiments,
they collect data that can be used to
explain relationships better and to
reveal information about the quality
of products and services they
provide.
Frequency Distribution:
Scores for an engineering class are as follows: 58,
95, 80, 75, 68, 97, 60, 85, 75, 88, 90, 78, 62, 83,
73, 70, 70, 85, 65, 75, 53, 62, 56, 72, 79
To better assess the success of the class, we make a
frequency chart:
Cumulative Frequency
The data can be further organized by calculating
the cumulative frequency (CDF).
The cumulative frequency shows the cumulative
number of students with scores up to and
including those in the given range. Usually we
normalize the data - divide 26.
If the scores are piled up at thelow end, and "tail off" near the high end, it'spositively
skewed
If the scores are piled up at thehigh end, and "tail off" near the low end, then it'snegatively
skewed
PositiveorNegativeby the way the tail points --if tail points to high end, it's positive; if tail
points towards negative end, it's negative
Significant Figures
Accuracy & Precision
Why?
it can often be far too easy to
exaggerate a number's accuracy,
leading to mathematical errors. For
these reasons, significant digits are
important.
Rules! (repeat)
Every approximate number has a specific number of significant
digits (or significant figures).
These are digits in the number which convey actual numerical
information, and are not just written down to show us where
the decimal point is located. Thus
(i) all nonzero digits are significant.
(ii) all zeros which are between nonzero digits are
significant.
(iii) all zeros to the right of the decimal point are
significant if they follow nonzero digits in the
number.
(iv) zeros which are present only to show the
position of the decimal point are not significant.
(v) zeros which can be omitted without affecting
the numerical value are not significant.
(This rule overlaps rule (iv.), but includes so-called leading
zeros sometimes written in the whole number parts of
decimal values.)
Zeros!
The first rule covers most situations. The
tricky cases are situations with digits which
are zeros, because the digit zero has two
roles in decimal numbers.
One role is to indicate the value zero at a
certain position (as in 105 equals one
hundred plus zero tens plus five ones).
The other role is to tell us where the
decimal point should be located (as in a
number like 0.0035).
Types of Zeros
Zero Type #1: Space holding zeros on
numbers less than one. Eg
0.00500,0.03040
They are there to put the decimal point in
its correct location. They DO NOT involve
measurement decisions. Upon writing the
numbers in scientific notation (5.00 x
103and 3.040 x 102), the non-significant
zeros disappear.
Examples
142.56, 3001.378,5.40,
3001.378 has seven significant digits. It has seven digits and all seven are
significant. Five of the seven digits are nonzero digits, and so are significant by
rule (i.). The two zeros are between significant digits, and so are themselves
significant by rule (ii.). You can think of these two digits as being as significant
as the other digits in the number because they indicate the value here, for
instance, has no hundreds (as opposed to one hundred, or two hundred etc.)
and that it also has no tens (as opposed to one ten, or two tens, etc.)
5.40 has three digits and all three are significant. The two nonzero digits are
significant by rule (i.). The zero at the end is also significant by rule (iii.) it is
to the right of the decimal point and follows nonzero digits in the number. This
zero indicates that the number has been measured to two decimal places (or,
its uncertainty of measurement is 0.005, following the ideas described in the
previous slide). If the zero in this number was not the result of measurement
(that the value has 5 ones and 4 tenths, and zero hundredths, as opposed to
one hundredth or two hundredths, etc), then it should not have been written.
Finally!
Significant digits in 0.00?
In the cartoon, the extra precision on the left actually makes things worse for our poor analyst
(who is about to be hit by a piano). The analyst has to spend too much time trying to understand
the data and misses the opportunity to take the much-needed action of getting out of the way
Examples
321.56 has an accuracy of 5 significant digits and
a precision of 2 decimal places.
3.2156 has an accuracy of 5 significant digits and
a precision of four decimal places.
321560 has an accuracy of 5 significant digits
and a precision of tens (assuming the rightmost
zero is not significant.
0.00000003 has an accuracy of 1 significant digit
and a precision of 8 decimal places.
325,000,000 has an accuracy of 3 significant
digits and a precision of millions.
Descriptive statistics
representation of collected data in the form of
Tables
Charts
Inferential statistics
Generalization from samples
Limited observations to predictions, risk
assessment, reliability
Limitations of inference arise from Sampling
error(Subjectivity in data collection, wrong theory..