High School

11. The accepted temperature of a refrigerator is [tex]38.0 \, ^\circ F[/tex]. A temperature sensor is tested 10 times in the refrigerator, yielding the temperatures (in degrees [tex]^\circ F[/tex]): 37.8, 38.3, 38.1, 38.0, 37.6, 38.2, 38.0, 38.0, 37.4, 38.3. Is the distribution of values from the test accurate (yes or no), and precise (yes or no)?

12. A researcher measures the mass of a sample to be [tex]5.51 \, \text{g}[/tex]. The actual mass of the sample is known to be [tex]5.80 \, \text{g}[/tex]. Calculate the percent error.

Answer :

We begin by analyzing the temperature measurements and then move on to the mass measurement.

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Step 1. Temperature Measurements

The refrigerator temperature is accepted as [tex]$38.0^\circ \text{F}$[/tex]. Ten tests produced the following temperatures (in degrees Fahrenheit):

[tex]$$37.8,\; 38.3,\; 38.1,\; 38.0,\; 37.6,\; 38.2,\; 38.0,\; 38.0,\; 37.4,\; 38.3.$$[/tex]

1.1. Calculate the Mean

The mean temperature [tex]$\bar{x}$[/tex] is given by

[tex]$$
\bar{x} = \frac{1}{10}\sum_{i=1}^{10} x_i.
$$[/tex]

Carrying out the calculation,

[tex]$$
\bar{x} \approx 37.97^\circ \text{F}.
$$[/tex]

Since the mean is very close to the accepted value of [tex]$38.0^\circ \text{F}$[/tex] (the difference is about [tex]$0.03^\circ \text{F}$[/tex]), we say that the measurements are accurate.

1.2. Calculate the Sample Standard Deviation

The sample standard deviation [tex]$s$[/tex] is calculated by

[tex]$$
s = \sqrt{\frac{1}{n-1}\sum_{i=1}^{n}(x_i - \bar{x})^2},
$$[/tex]

where [tex]$n=10$[/tex]. After computing the deviations and taking the square root, we obtain

[tex]$$
s \approx 0.295^\circ \text{F}.
$$[/tex]

A small standard deviation indicates that the values are tightly clustered around the mean. Therefore, the sensor is precise.

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Step 2. Mass Measurement and Percent Error

A researcher measures the mass as [tex]$5.51\;\text{g}$[/tex], while the actual mass is [tex]$5.80\;\text{g}$[/tex].

2.1. Calculate the Percent Error

The percent error is determined by

[tex]$$
\text{Percent Error} = \left|\frac{\text{Measured Value} - \text{Actual Value}}{\text{Actual Value}}\right| \times 100\%.
$$[/tex]

Substitute the given values:

[tex]$$
\text{Percent Error} = \left|\frac{5.51 - 5.80}{5.80}\right| \times 100\% = \left|\frac{-0.29}{5.80}\right| \times 100\% \approx 5\%.
$$[/tex]

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Final Answer:

1. For the temperature measurements:
- The sensor is accurate: yes.
- The sensor is precise: yes.

2. For the mass measurement:
- The percent error is approximately [tex]$5\%$[/tex].

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