Introduction/Purpose: To learn about measurement accuracy and the use of significant figures in

calculation.

Experimental Procedure:

Materials List:
 Wooden Block
 Scale / Balance
 Ruler
 Several irregularly shaped solids
 Beaker
 Graduated cylinders
 Water Bottle
 Thermometer
 Pipette
 bottle of unknown liquid

Procedure: The lab was broken down into 4 components. For the first, A wooden block was massed
using a balance (grams) and then measured using a ruler (cm). Using this data, its density was then
calculated. For part two. Two irregular solids, seashells and lead shot) were each massed using a scale.
Next the volume of each was calculated using displacement in water (the solids were added to a known
quantity of water and the difference in volume was recorded. Using this data, the density of each solid
was calculated. For the 3rd section, a quantity of water was added to a beaker. This water was then
transferred to a graduated cylinder and remeasured. The percent difference was calculated and
recorded. This procedure was then repeated for two other quantities of water. For the last section, an
unknown liquid was pipetted (10 ml) into a beaker and massed on a scale using a beaker of known
mass Its temperature was also taken using a thermometer. This procedure was repeated twice. The
density of this liquid was then calculated.

Results: In parts 1,2,4 the densities of the various substances was successfully found. In part 2, the
density of the lead shot was found to be significantly greater than that of the seashell fragments. In part
two, the average error of the beaker's measurement was found to be around 11%. In part 4 the density
of the unknown liquid was found to be 1.021 g/ml. This density is slightly above water, and indicates
that the liquid may be saltwater.

Conclusion: The aims of the lab, instructing the proper use of significant figures and demonstrating the
role that error plays in experimentation were both successfully met. It clear that certain pieces of
laboratory equipment are better suited for certain purposes. In future iterations of the experiment, It
may be better to aggregate all of the collected results, so that each group may have more data to work
with and compare.
 Experiment 1: Measurements and Density
Matthew Orenstein 2/8/2017
Luke Kline