Question

dennis estimated the width of the space he has in his kitchen to fit a new refrigerator to be 36 inches. the actual width is 33 inches. what is the approximate percent error?

Answer 1

8%

Explanation:

Given the following data;

Experimental value = 36 inches

Theoretical value = 33 inches

Percent error can be defined as a measure of the extent to which an experimental value differs from the theoretical value.

Mathematically, it is given by this expression;

`Percent \; error = \frac {experimental \;value - theoretical \; value}{ theoretical \;value} *100`

Substituting into the equation, we have;

`Percent \; error = \frac {33 - 36}{ 36} *100`

Note: we would ignore the negative sign.

`Percent \; error = \frac {3}{ 36} *100`

`Percent \; error = 0.833 *100`

Percent error = 8.33 ≈ 8%