What is Error: Definition and 999 Discussions

An error (from the Latin error, meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake.
In statistics, "error" refers to the difference between the value which has been computed and the correct value. An error could result in failure or in a deviation from the intended performance or behavior.

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  1. B

    Comp Sci C++ Error in function call that I don't understand

    Hi there- I'm trying to check an array for ascending order and if not to print out the number that is out of order by using a function. I solved it by not using a function but when I've tried to use a fxn for some reason it tells me that in my call for the fxn the numbers "argument of type int...
  2. STEMucator

    Calculating Error in Efficiency of Half Wave Rectifier

    Homework Statement A single phase half wave rectifier produces a DC signal ##V_{DC} = (4.6 \pm 0.78) V## and AC signal ##V_{AC} = (0.22 \pm 0.036) V##. What is the error on the efficiency? Homework Equations Functional dependence, propagation of error: ##\sigma_f = \sqrt{...
  3. V

    Relap thermodynamic property error

    Hi I am using relap to study a blowdown transient. If I let it run it with actual heat fluxes, the program terminates with error message saying thermodynamic property error with maximum time step. Reducing the time step delays the onset of the error by a fraction of a second. Runs much longer...
  4. U

    "Zero thickness" error in SOL 600 (Patran)

    Hello all, I am doing a SOL 600 analysis but Nastran gives me an error of "zero thickness" in some elements. Obviously, I checked those elements and they have properly defined their properties so I don't know what can I do. I've done a lot of linear and nonlinear static analysis in that...
  5. M

    Why Is My Calculated Error for Resonant Frequency So High?

    Homework Statement So I am calculating the error for something and I am getting really weird values. So I know that the value for the Inductor is 24.97 +- 0.005 mH and that for the capacitor is 105.7+-0.0005 nf. So I am finding the value for the resonant frequency Homework Equations...
  6. C

    Maximum possible percentage error

    Homework Statement The maximum error in the measurement of the mass and length of the side of a cube are 3% and 2% respectively. What is the maximum error in the measurement of density? (The questions has options as:- (a)3% (b)5% (c)6% (d)9% (e)12% Homework Equations Density(ρ)=...
  7. STEMucator

    Density of cylinder, error propagation

    Homework Statement The density of a cylinder is calculated from the following data: ##m= (2.8±0.8)g## ##d = (2.2±0.1)cm## ##h = (4.0±1.0) cm## What is the error on the density, before rounding, in ##\frac{g}{cm^3}##? Homework Equations ##V = \pi r^2 h = \frac{1}{4} \pi d^2...
  8. Glype11

    Troubleshooting Trigonometry: Finding Coefficient of Friction on a Slope

    This problem deals with finding the coefficient of friction between an object and a slope. It gives an object with mass m, sliding down a hill with a slope of θ at a constant velocity. I got mgsinθ=fksinθ. However the book shows mgsinθ=fk. The kinetic friction force and the force down the slope...
  9. M

    What is meant by standard error for linear and quaratic coefficients ?

    Dear Fellows, If we fit our data to a quadratic equation then What is meant by standard error for linear and quaratic coefficients ? I know that standard error is the standard deviation from the Sampling data. But for individual coefficients what is its interpretation ? Best Wishes Masood
  10. C

    Why Does My Sonobond Ultrasonic Welder Display an ERROR FREQUENCY?

    Hi everyone, I recently purchased a Sonobond Ultrasonic Welder for Plastics (MP3512 w/ Generator SL35-900). After setting it up with the compressed air system and a voltage converter (I'm in the US), I turned the generator on. On the display, I got an "ERROR FREQUENCY." I thought it was...
  11. C

    Percentage error of a guess at a position, and the actual position.

    How do I calculate the percentage error between a guess of a position in 3D space, and the actual position. For example, if I am allowed an error of 100mm in the x, y, and z directions, in a 5m x 4m x 3m volume, what is the maximum percentage error allowed? Can I just do...
  12. K

    MATLAB [Matlab] Error running optimization.

    Error running optimization. Inputs must be a scalar and a square matri I am trying to use fminunc using optimtool. But i got the error Error running optimization. Inputs must be a scalar and a square matrix. this is the function i typed in the editor. function F = fun(x) F =...
  13. M

    How to solve an integral with the Inverse error function

    Hi, this is not a homework and my problem is much bigger for me to give full details here. I came across this integral \mathcal{I}(\xi)=\int^{\xi_c}_{\xi}{\rm d}\xi^\prime\exp\left[\sqrt{2}\sigma\,{\rm Erf}^{-1}\left(1-\frac{8\pi}{3}{\xi^\prime}^3\right)\right] where Erf^{-1} is the...
  14. B

    Error estimation using differentials

    Homework Statement A force of 500N is measured with a possible error of 1N. Its component in a direction 60° away from its line of action is required, where the angle is subject to an error of 0.5°. What (approximately) is the largest possible error in the component? Homework Equations...
  15. A

    Error propagation when dividing by fitted model

    Homework Statement I am taking a dataset of intensity vs. frequency (which I'll call dataset I_1), and fitting it with a linear model (I_mod). I want to divide another intensity vs. wavelength data (I_2) by this fitted model to get fractional changes in the second data set compared to the...
  16. U

    How Do You Calculate Uncertainty δd in Bragg Scattering?

    My goal is to find the uncertainty δd in the following equation. d=C_1 \frac{1}{\sqrt{V}} \frac{1}{D} C_1 is the collection of constants \frac{2Lhc}{\sqrt{2m_e c^2 }} D is a value measured in meters with an uncertainty δD = 0.001 m and V is a value measured in volts with an uncertainty δV =...
  17. M

    Finding Error on Taylor Polynomials using Taylor's Theorem

    (a) Use Taylor's Theorem to estimate the error in using the Taylor Polynomial of f(x)=sqrt{x} of degree 2 to approximate sqrt{8}. (The answer should be something like 1/2 * 8^{-7/2}. (b) Find a bound on the difference of sin(x) and x- x^{3}/6 + x^{5}/120 for x in [0,1]This is a problem on a...
  18. J

    C/C++ Help figuring out this C++ compile-time error?

    My compiler doesn't like something about my enumerator declaration. Maybe something else too. I'm trying to figure it out. Code: #include <string> namespace CalcWizConsts { char varChars[] = { 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q'...
  19. Z

    Loop-the-loop normal force problem. Possible textbook error?

    Homework Statement A pilot of mass m flies a jet plane on a "loop-the-loop" course by flying in a vertical circle of radius R at a constant speed v. The force that the cockpit seat exerts on the pilot at the top of the loop is (A) mg. (B) mg\left(\frac{v^{2}}{R+1}\right). (C)...
  20. J

    Maximum allowable probability of error for the (8, 4) Hamming Code

    Homework Statement What is the maximum allowable probability of error is a typical digit in order that the (8, 4) Hamming Code can be used with probability .999 that the receiver will not be misled (i.e., 3 or more errors occur) in a single word? Homework Equations...
  21. B

    How can free of self-interaction error easily be concluded in DFT?

    I saw in a reference "For a system consisting just of one electron, DFT predicts an non-physical self-interaction energy." (Theor Chem Acc (2009) 123:171–182), and thus wrong single electron energy. Does this mean I can quickly conclude whether a specific exchange-correlation functional has been...
  22. S

    Fortran What Does a Positive Width Error in Fortran Format Specifier Mean?

    Hi all, I got this error: rm -f *.o *.mod *.MOD *.exe *.stackdump main gfortran -g -I/usr/include -c main.f90 gfortran -g -I/usr/include -c subroutines.f90 subroutines.f90:21.16: 10 format(data,'i3.3','.dat') 1 Error: Positive width required in format...
  23. M

    Truncation Error and Second Order Accuracy.

    By combining the two equations i should be able to solve for u' and get rid of u'': u_(i-1) = u_i + (-h)*u' + 1/2 * (-h)^2 * u'' + O(h^4) u_(i-2) = u_i + (-2h)*u' + 1/2 * (-2h)^2 * u'' + O(h^4) But i keep getting stuck and can't come up with the answer below. Can anyone help me please...
  24. M

    MATLAB Troubleshooting MATLAB Installation Errors: How to Resolve Common Issues

    Hi, I tried to install MATLAB but came across with this problem. How can I figure out it?
  25. A

    Fortran Array Reference is out of bounds error? Fortran

    So, I have a bunch of errors which need resolving here but majority are based on the "out of bounds" error and hence the topic title :). Would be great if you are able to help me resolve the errors. Quite a newbie with fortran. So please bear with any silly questions that I may throw at you...
  26. S

    Fortran Why am I getting a NaN Error when Running my Fortran Program?

    Hi to everyone, I am quite new to forum and fortran. Basically, i am trying to calculate the bubble radius using RP model and this is my code: IMPLICIT DOUBLE PRECISION (A-H,O-Z) IMPLICIT INTEGER (I-N) C ! Declare local constant Pi REAL, PARAMETER :: Pi = 3.1415927D0 C...
  27. C

    Linear Regression Error on Excel

    This is for an experimental physics homework,I am using the latest version of MS Excel. I have a set of data, I perform linear regression on them and it gives me a line y=ax + b. Given that both a and b have physical significance I would like to know how could I know the uncertainty...
  28. T

    Biehle's Nova Physics page 3 error with volume calculation?

    1. The problem statement, all vbles and given/known data So I'm going throught the Nova Physics book and I'm wondering if there's a mistake in calculation. The question reads: How much volume does 0.4kg of oxygen gas take up at T= 27 degrees Celsius and P= 12 atm (gas constant R = 0.0821 L...
  29. D

    MHB Error in fixed point arithmetic library

    I found an issue with the fixed point library, and Heiko Oberdiek found the offending code and submitted a correction to fix the problem in the fixed point library. The details can be found here. At present, you can issue the command below to over come the problem. Eventually someone will...
  30. C

    Can Riemann's Analytic Continuation Solve My Reimann Zeta Function Error?

    I am currently writing a c++ program to calculate the Value of the Reimann Zeta Function, The problem is At the state its at, when you input a number a + bi it only gives the correct answer to values of a > 1. Can anyone show or link me Riemann's Analytic continuation of the Function so it...
  31. D

    Fitting a curve to data with error bars on curve parameters

    I have several data points with error bars, and these error bars are different sizes for each of the data points. I'd like to fit a model function to them which has non-linear parameters, and be able to get error bars on the model parameters, ie. if my model is something like f(x) = A +...
  32. S

    How Accurate Is the Ninth Partial Sum of an Alternating Series?

    Homework Statement if the series ∑(n=1, goes to infinity) (-1)^n/(n^3) is approximated by its ninth partial sum, find a bound for truncation error Homework Equations Alternating Series Estimation Thm: If alternating series is CONVERGENT, then truncation error for nth partial sum is less than...
  33. C

    Statistical error analysis of Geiger counter?

    1. Homework Statement An average value of N measurements is defined as: ravg = 1N ∑ ri where i = 1 and it sums up to N measurements By using this expression in the master formula for a general function z = (x1, x2,...) error propagation, we find the δravg error propagation: (δravg)2 =...
  34. C

    Archived Relative error of a geiger counter?

    Homework Statement A geiger counter measures 750 counts in 5 min a) determine the average counting rate and the standard deviation of the counting rate. b) find the relative error c) How long would you want to count to get a relative error of 1%? Homework Equations standard...
  35. T

    Type II error hypothesis question

    Homework Statement Here is the question (I am only confused about part b): Here is the solution given by my professor: The Attempt at a Solution However, I do not agree with part b and honestly have no clue where they got that formula from. I used the method taught in my class along with a...
  36. D

    Feedback and control steady state error

    Homework Statement Determine the system type for $$ G(s) = \frac{K}{(s + 1)(10s + 1)(20s + 1)} $$Homework Equations I am using a step, ramp, and parabolic inputs. That is, \begin{align} R(s) &= \frac{R}{s}\\ R(s) &= \frac{R}{s^2}\\ R(s) &= \frac{R}{s^3} \end{align} The Attempt at a Solution...
  37. E

    Why does conditional probability used in mean square error equal zero?

    Hi guys, I am having trouble showing that \mathbb{E}\left[(Y-\mathbb{E}[Y|X])^{2}\right]=0. I understand the proof of why E[Y|X] minimizes the mean square error, but I cannot understand why it is then equal to zero. I tried multiplying out the square to get...
  38. J

    Experimental Uncertainty and Error

    Hello all, I used the micrometer in my lab that has a resolution of 100 nm. so, my measurement looks something like, 0.2345 mm, with an uncertainty of 0.00005 mm. But I don't want to write, (0.2345 +/- 0.00005)mm in my data table because it just looks a little awkward to have so many...
  39. karush

    MHB Integration Sign Error: TI-Nspire Solution

    the bk did not give an answer for this but my TI-nspire gave what is shown, however I don't know where the - sign (see red arrow) comes from. I looked at the steps given in W|A but thot all the substitution was not needed to solve this.
  40. B

    Fortran Fortran 90 - gfortran error - help

    Hi, I have written a fortran 90 program that finds the definite integral of a function using the trapezium method. Everything is fine, other than when I compile my program it produces the following error: assignment_2_final.f90:127.2: ITRAP = (z/2)((G(a) + G(b)) + z*area) 1...
  41. kq6up

    Estimating Error for an Infinite Series (Mclaurin)

    Homework Statement Problem # 30 in Ch1 Section 16 in Mary L. Boas' Math Methods in the Physical Sciences It is clear that you (or your computer) can’t find the sum of an infinite series just by adding up the terms one by one. For example, to get \zeta (1.1)=\sum _{ n=1 }^{ \infty }{...
  42. S

    Statistics: What is the probability of type I error?

    Homework Statement X is a random variable of binomial distribution of parameter n=10 and unknown parameter p. Hypotheses are given as follows: H_0 \;\; : \;\; p=0.6 H_1 \;\; : \;\; p \neq 0.6 Suppose rejection region for H_0 is \{X \leq 1\} \cup \{X \geq 9\} Question 1: What is...
  43. S

    Derivative Method for Error in Kinetic Energy formula

    Homework Statement Finding error in kinetic energyHomework Equations K = \frac{1}{2} m v2The Attempt at a Solution Measured mass and velocities have errors in them. So we have to use derivative method to calculate uncertainty in KE which is to find the square root of the derivatives of K...
  44. T

    Fortran Fortran Error Unexpected data declaration statement

    Fortran Error "Unexpected data declaration statement" Hi all, I'm writing a program to perform a linear inversion on a set of magnetic data. I'm fairly new to Fortran, but I have coded Fourier and wavelet transformation programs in it. I'm having a problem when trying to declare my variable...
  45. kq6up

    Error Estimation for Mary Boas Series Problem 1.14.8

    Homework Statement This is problem 1.14.8 in Mary Boas: Math for Phys. Sci. Estimate the error if f(x)=\sum _{ n=1 }^{ \infty }{ \frac { { x }^{ n } }{ { n }^{ 3 } } } is approximated by the sum of its first three terms for |x| < 1/2 . Homework Equations Error\quad <\quad...
  46. C

    Mathematica Solving ODE numerically in Mathematica - 'ndnum' error?

    I'm trying to solve this ODE R'(t)=\frac{-a}{R(t)^2} numerically in Mathematica (a, b are non-zero constants). Here's what I have: NDSolve[{R'[t]==-a/R[t]^2, R[0]==b, WhenEvent[R[t]==0, end=t; "StopIntegration"]}, R, {t,0,1}] It's returning with NDSolve:::ndnum : Encountered...
  47. PhanthomJay

    E to the -y plus trial and error math?

    A co worker has the following equation: 3e^{-.5y} +3e^{-y} + 3e^{-1.5y} + 103e^{-2y} =98.39 Solve for y. Some sort of compound interest bond equation I am told, or something like that. He has been told that to solve for y, one must use a trial and error approach. True??
  48. D

    Error in Carroll's Spacetime Geometry?

    On page 161 of Carroll's Spacetime and Geometry, Carroll writes that \delta g_{\mu\nu}=-g_{\mu\rho}g_{\nu\sigma}\delta g^{\rho\sigma}. ##\delta g_{\alpha \beta}## denotes an arbitrary, infinitesimal variation of the metric. Why is there a minus sign? By the regular rules of raising and...
  49. Harry Smith

    Determining error in a linear gradient/slope

    Hi, so I'm currently writing a lab report and need to determine the error in the value of my graphs gradient, m. I have found the maximum and minimum gradient from the 'worst' lines of fit but am lost where to go from there. My data analysis/statistics lecture notes are no help on this topic...
  50. adjacent

    Fix oledlg.dll Error: Re-Install Program & Download DLL File

    This message appeared when I logged in today.It came from Internet download manager and Adobe reader. which are set to auto-start on user start up. I manually tried to open Internet download manager and still got the same error. I have never seen such a thing. I suspect this is caused by...
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