Question

If you weigh a 5 kg weight and your scale tells you it weighs 4.87 kgs, what is the percent error of your scale?

Answer 1

The percent error of the scale, when comparing the measured weight of 4.87 kg to the actual weight of 5 kg, is calculated to be 2.6%.

Step-by-step explanation:

When calculating the percent error of a measurement, you compare the measured value to the actual value to see how much they differ as a percentage of the actual value. To find the percent error, we use the following formula:

Percent Error = |(Measured Value − Actual Value) / Actual Value| × 100%

In this case, the actual weight is 5 kg, but the scale measures it as 4.87 kg. So the calculation of the percent error would be:

|(4.87 kg − 5 kg) / 5 kg| × 100% = |(-0.13 kg) / 5 kg| × 100% = 2.6%

The percent error of your scale is 2.6%.