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VCE Stuff => VCE Mathematics/Science/Technology => VCE Subjects + Help => VCE Science => Topic started by: lacoste on January 01, 2009, 01:50:02 am

Title: Significant Figures
Post by: lacoste on January 01, 2009, 01:50:02 am

Can someone explain what is the difference of Significant Figures in Chemistry, Physics, and Specialist?

Why do I always get the wrong significant figure in physics, is the textbook always ambiguous?

Thanks!! 

~~ :)

Title: Re: Significant Figures
Post by: Mao on January 01, 2009, 06:37:41 pm

Chem: give answer to the lowest number of significant figures in the data used.
Physics: they don't really care, but don't give 'about 3' or '3.1415926535iaccidentallythewholeworld', be reasonable, about 3 sig figs would be the safest
Specialist: always try to go exact, unless the question says so otherwise. There is a little dispute between using g=9.8 or using g as a constant [as an exact form]. In that case, I'd say write down both.

Title: Re: Significant Figures
Post by: shinny on January 01, 2009, 08:07:34 pm

Quote from: Mao on January 01, 2009, 06:37:41 pm

There is a little dispute between using g=9.8 or using g as a constant [as an exact form].

It's stated in the Specialist Section 2 instructions to 'take the acceleration due to gravity to have magnitude g m/s2, where g = 9.8'. Hence, always use 9.8 and avoid having g's in your answer. Exam solutions tend to avoid using g as well.