The Uncertainty in Physical Measurements

Book excerpt: The scienti c method is based on the measurement of di erent physical qu- tities and the search for relations between their values. All measured values of physical quantities are, however, a ected by uncertainty. Understanding the origin of uncertainty, evaluating its extent, and suitably taking it into account in data analysis, are fundamental steps for assessing the global accuracy of physical laws and the degree of reliability of their technological applications. The introduction to uncertainty evaluation and data analysis procedures is generally made in laboratory courses for freshmen. During my long-lasting teaching experience, I had the feeling of some sort of gap between the ava- able tutorial textbooks, and the specialized monographs. The present work aims at lling this gap, and has been tested and modi ed through a feedback interaction with my students for several years. I have tried to maintain as much as possible a tutorial approach, that, starting from a phenomenolo- cal introduction, progressively leads to an accurate de nition of uncertainty and to some of the most common procedures of data analysis, facilitating the access to advanced monographs. This book is mainly addressed to - dergraduate students, but can be a useful reference for researchers and for secondary school teachers. The book is divided into three parts and a series of appendices. Part I is devoted to a phenomenological introduction to measurement and uncertainty. In Chap.