Accuracy vs Precision

accuracy vs precision
algebra
significant figures
statistics
system international (SI)
trig

Acurracy refers to how close you come to the right answer. Simplistically, the number of significant figures is related to the accuracy of the measurement.

Precision refers to how close each of your measurements are together. This usually is related to the instrument used to make the measurements. The smaller the divisions on the instrument, usually the more precise the values. The last significant figure indicates the precision of the measurement.

In the diagrams:
the blue dots represent data values (measured quantites)
the big red dot represents the right answer

For each of the pictures, identify if it represents precision, accuracy, both, or neither

1

2

3
4
last modified 5-30-10