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Animal Course Physiology Exam > 3. Measurement, Errors, Data and Unit Conversion > Flashcards

3. Measurement, Errors, Data and Unit Conversion Flashcards

1
Q
  1. Say that someone’s body temperature is measured by four different devices and the resulting four measurements are given below. Which reading has an absolute error of ±0.05 °C?
    A. 38 °C
    B. 37.8 °C
    C. 37.85 °C
    D. 37.855 °C
A

Answer is B: Absolute error is plus or minus half the smallest scale interval. Two times 0.05 = 0.1, so the smallest scale interval is 0.1 of a degree which applies to the 37.8 °C value.

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2
Q
  1. What can be correctly said of data that are “normally distributed”?
    A. The upper and lower values of the distribution describe the healthy range of physiological values.
    B. The standard deviation characterises the dispersion of data, and the variance characterises the central tendency of the data.
    C. The mean and range are statistics that are strictly only applicable to normally distributed data.
    D. Sixty-eight percent of all data values will be within one standard deviation from the mean.
A

Answer is D: Normally distributed data have this predicable relationship between their mean and the spread of values around the mean.

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3
Q
  1. If someone’s height is measured while the person is wearing shoes, the height will be overestimated. This type of error is known as which of the following?
    A. Absolute error
    B. Parallax error
    C. Calibration error
    D. Zeroing error
A

Answer is D: Zeroing error because in this example, the object being measured is not aligned with the start of the measuring scale.

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4
Q
  1. Which of the following metric prefixes is used to denote one thousandth of a gram?
    A. Micro
    B. Milli
    C. Centi
    D. Kilo
A

Answer is B: “Milli” refers to thousandth or 10−3 (nothing to do with million!).

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5
Q
  1. What is the standard deviation used for?
    A. As a measure of central tendency
    B. As a measure of dispersion
    C. As a measure of spread of data that are normally distributed
    D. As a measure of the error of the mean value
A

Answer is C: B is also correct but is not as good an answer as choice C.

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6
Q
  1. A bathroom scales displays a mass reading of 68.4 kg. Which one of the following could NOT be the true mass of the person standing on the scales?
    A. 68.40 kg
    B. 68.44 kg
    C. 68.47 kg
    D. 68.37 kg
A

Answer is C: A reading of 68.4 (i.e. stated to the nearest 0.1 kg) means that the actual value is between 68.35 and 68.44, so only 68.47 (which is closer to 68.5) is outside this range.

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7
Q
  1. Which of the following g does NOT describe a milligram?
    A. 1×10^3 g
    B. 1×10^−3 g
    C. One thousandth of a gram
    D. 0.001 g
A

Answer is A: This (1×103 g) is 1000 = 1 kg.

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8
Q
  1. Look at the figure of a thermometer. What is the temperature reading?
    A. 15 °C
    B. 15.4 °C
    C. 17 °C
    D. 20 °C
A

Answer is C: Every five-scale intervals is labelled with a number, and each interval corresponds to 1°. As the reading is two intervals above 15: 15 + 2 = 17.

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9
Q
  1. Look again at the figure of a thermometer. What is the absolute error of the temperature reading?
    A. ± 0.05 °C
    B. ± 0.5 °C
    C. ± 1.0 °C
    D. ± 5.0 °C
A

Answer is B: Absolute error is plus or minus half of the smallest scale interval (which is 1°); half of one is 0.5.

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10
Q
  1. What information does the “standard deviation” of a mean value tell us?
    A. It gives us the healthy range of values for the measured physiological quantity.
    B. It is the range within which 68% of measured values are found.
    C. It tells us that the measured values are normally distributed.
    D. It tells us the number of values that were used to calculate the mean.
A

Answer is B: C is also correct but choice B is the better answer.

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11
Q
  1. On a clinical thermometer where the smallest scale interval is 0.1 °C, a person’s temperature is measured to be 37.7 °C. Which of the listed temperatures could NOT be the person’s true temperature?
    A. 37.72 °C
    B. 37.76 °C
    C. 37.67 °C
    D. 37.685 °C
A

Answer is B: An actual value of 37.76 °C would be seen on a scale that has 0.1 as its smallest interval, as 37.8. All other values are closer to 37.7 than they are to 37.8 or to 37.6.

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12
Q
  1. How many micrograms are there in 5 mg?
    A. 0.005
    B. 0.5
    C. 500
    D. 5000
A

Answer is D: 1 mg is 1000μg, so 5 mg = 5000 μg.

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13
Q
  1. What does the standard deviation of the mean represent? For values that are normally distributed, it represents:
    A. The value above and below the mean that includes 68% of all data values
    B. The difference between the highest data value and the lowest data value
    C. The average of the difference between each data value and the mean value
    D. The spread of the normal distribution
A

Answer is A: The term “standard” in standard deviation of a distribution of measured values means that it may be relied upon to encompass 68% of all measured values.

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14
Q
  1. Given that a milligram 1 × 10−3 g, what is a microgram?
    A. 1×103 g
    B. 1000 mg
    C. 1×10−6 g
    D. 0.001 g
A

Answer is C: A microgram is one millionth (0.000001 or 10−6) of a gram. A = 1 kg; B = 1 g; D = 1 milligram.

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15
Q
  1. How many micrograms are there in 1 mg?
    A. 0.001
    B. 0.1
    C. 100
    D. 1000
A

Answer is D: 1 μg = 10−3 × 1 mg, so 1000 μg is the same as 1 mg.

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16
Q
  1. How many milligrams are there in 1 μg?
    A. 0.001
    B. 1000
    C. 0.1
    D. 1000 000
A

Answer is A: 1 mg = 10^3 × 1 μg, so one thousandth of a milligram is the same as one microgram.

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17
Q
  1. What is meant when a person’s mass is stated as 73.6 kg? That:
    A. The mass is closer to 73.6 than it is to 73.7 or 73.5.
    B. The mass is closer to 73.6 than to any other value.
    C. The mass is between 73.5 and 73.7.
    D. The mass is 73.6 ±0.1 kg.
A

Answer is A: Because the mass is stated to one decimal place, the absolute error is ±0.05.

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18
Q
  1. Which of the following statements applies to the statistic known as the “standard deviation”?
    A. It is a measure of central tendency.
    B. It is only applicable to qualitative measurements.
    C. Standard deviation is also known as the “variance”.
    D. Ninety-five percent of all data lie within two standard deviations of the mean.
A

Answer is D: This is the only true statement for normally distrusted data.

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19
Q
  1. Which of the following units is NOT part of the Australian Metric System of units?
    A. mmHg for measuring blood pressure
    B. Degree Celsius for measuring temperature C. Pascal for measuring pressure
    D. Second for measuring time
A

Answer is A: Pascal (Pa) is the SI unit for pressure.

20
Q
  1. In the Australian Metric System of units, what does the prefix micro stand for?
    A. One thousand
    B. One thousandth
    C. One million
    D. One millionth
A

Answer is D: One millionth = 10−6.

21
Q
  1. Which of the following measurements is a semiquantitative one?
    A. A blood pressure of 120/80 mmHg
    B. A blood glucose level of + + +
    C. A state of anxiety measure of “calm”
    D. The patient’s name is Tim Cruise
A

Answer is B: The number of “+” signs indicates a level of magnitude that is semi- quantitative, but there is no unit of magnitude. C is “qualitative”, while D is “nominal”.

22
Q
  1. A baby’s mass measurement is 3.8 kg ± 0.05 kg. What is the absolute error in the measurement?
    A. ±0.05÷3.8
    B. ±(0.05÷3.8)×100%
    C. ± 0.05 kg
    D. 0.05 kg
A

Answer is C: By definition, absolute error is half the smallest scale interval (0.1 in this case) above and below the measured value.

23
Q

23.One millilitre of water has a mass of 1.00g. Which of the following sets of three measurements of the mass of 1 ml of water is the most precise set?
A. 0.98 g, 1.00 g, 1.02 g
B. 0.99 g, 0.99 g, 0.99 g
C. 1.00 g, 1.01 g, 1.02 g
D. 0.99 g, 0.99 g, 1.00 g

A

Answer is B: Precision refers to the repeatability of the measurement. In choice B, all measurements are the same so are precise.

24
Q
  1. Systematic errors arise from some inadequacy of equipment or technique.
    Which of the following is NOT an example of systematic error?
    A. Parallax error
    B. Calibration error
    C. Random error
    D. Zeroing error
A

Answer is C: As the words suggest, random error is not systematic as it is unpredictable.

25
Q
  1. The median is a measure of central tendency. It may be defined as:
    A. The value that has half the values greater than it and half less than it
    B. The value that occurs most often
    C. The distribution of values that has the mode, mean and average equal to each other
    D. The sum of all values divided by the number of values
A

Answer is A: Median is the midpoint of the number of measured values. The value that appears most often in a set of data is called the mode.

26
Q
  1. What is 3400 cm2 converted to square metres?
    A. 0.0034 m2
    B. 0.34 m2
    C. 3.4 m2
    D. 34 m2
A

Answer is B: A square metre has sides that are 100 cm long, so 100 × 100 = 10,000 cm2 in a square metre. So 3400 ÷ 10,000 = 0.34.

27
Q
  1. What is the number 0.028 when correctly expressed in scientific notation?
    A. 28×102
    B. 2.8×102
    C. 2.8×10−2
    D. 28×10−2
A

Answer is C: Scientific notation requires one number to the right of the decimal point (choices B and C). The decimal point must be shifted two places to achieve this. As 0.028 is less than one, the power of 10 is negative.

28
Q
  1. Which of the following numbers has four significant figures?
    A. 3300.0
    B. 37.60
    C. 0.008
    D. 0.0540
A

Answer is B: Any zero to the left of the first non-zero digit – when approached from the left – are not significant (zeros on the right are).

29
Q
  1. Which of the following statements involves a nominal measurement?
    A. James has a height of 170 cm.
    B. Barry’s blood pressure is elevated.
    C. Gino was born in Italy.
    D. More than 5% of Australians receive a pension.
A

Answer is C: Gino’s birthplace is “named” so the information is nominal, but no other information is available.

30
Q
  1. In the Australian Metric System of measurement, what does the prefix “milli” stand for?
    A. One thousandth
    B. One thousand
    C. One millionth
    D. One million
A

Answer is A: Milli = one thousandth = 10−3.

31
Q
  1. The millimetre of mercury is a unit commonly used for the measurement of blood pressure. Which of the following statements about this unit is true?
    A. It is part of the Australian Metric System but not part of the SI system.
    B. It is part of the SI system but not part of the Australian Metric System.
    C. It belongs to both the SI system and the Australian Metric System.
    D. It does not belong to either the SI system or the Australian Metric System.
A

Answer is D: Both the SI system and the Australian Metric System are “metric”; the mmHg is not (despite having millimetre in its name).

32
Q
  1. What is 120 mg expressed as grams?
    A. 0.12 g
    B. 1.2 g
    C. 12 g
    D. 12,000 g
A

Answer is A: 1 mg is a thousandth of a gram (0.001 g), so 120 mg is 120 thousandths = 0.120 (mg to g: shift the decimal point three places to the left).

33
Q
  1. How many milligrams are in 0.75 g?
    A. 0.00075 mg
    B. 7.5 mg
    C. 75 mg
    D. 750 mg
A

Answer is D: 1 g is a thousand milligrams, so three quarters of a gram is three quarters of a thousand milligrams = 750 mg (g to mg: shift the decimal point three places to the right).

34
Q
  1. What is 1.25 g converted to micrograms?
    A. 125
    B. 1250
    C. 12,500
    D. 1,250,000
A

Answer is D: Micro refers to “a millionth of”. There are 1.25 × 106 millionths of a gram in 1.25 g, so 1,250,000 millionths of a gram = 1,250,000 micrograms (g to μg: shift the decimal point six places to the right).

35
Q
  1. How many micrograms are there in 0.25 g?
    A. 250
    B. 25,000
    C. 250,000
    D. 25,000,000
A

Answer is C: Micrograms are smaller than grams, so there will be more of them. A million times more, so 0.25 × 106 = 250,000 μg (g to μg: shift the decimal point six places to the right).

36
Q
  1. When 2.25 mg is converted to micrograms, how many micrograms are there?
    A. 22.5
    B. 2,250
    C. 225,000
    D. 22,500,000
A

Answer is B: There are 1000 μg in each milligram. Hence 2.25 thousands is 2250 (mg to μg: shift the decimal point 3 places to the right).

37
Q
  1. What is the result of converting 650 μg to mg?
    A. 0.650
    B. 6.50
    C. 65
    D. 65,000
A

Answer is A: 1000 μg is needed to make a milligram, so we have less than one (μg to mg: shift the decimal point three places to the left).

38
Q

Note: The following three questions about the “central tendency” of data rely on the following information. Consider the weekly earnings in dollars for ten workers to be 400, 475, 475, 475, 500, 500, 525, 620, 630 and 660. These ten wages add to the total of $5260.

  1. What is the “average” wage – technically referred to as the arithmetic mean?
    A. $475
    B. $500
    C. $526
    D. $5260
A

Answer is C: The arithmetic mean is the sum of the ten wages, divided by the number of wages (10). So $5260 ÷ 10 = $526.

39
Q

Note: The following three questions about the “central tendency” of data rely on the following information. Consider the weekly earnings in dollars for ten workers to be 400, 475, 475, 475, 500, 500, 525, 620, 630 and 660. These ten wages add to the total of $5260.

  1. What is the “median” wage of these ten?
    A. $475
    B. $500
    C. $526
    D. $600
A

Answer is B: The median is the middle number. Half of the ten numbers are larger than (or equal to) the median and half are smaller. The wages have been arranged in ascending order: the fifth is $500 and the sixth is also $500. So half of the numbers are $500 or less and half are $500 or more. The median is midway between these two numbers and is $500.

40
Q

Note: The following three questions about the “central tendency” of data rely on the following information. Consider the weekly earnings in dollars for ten workers to be 400, 475, 475, 475, 500, 500, 525, 620, 630 and 660. These ten wages add to the total of $5260.

  1. What is the “mode” value of these ten wages?
    A. $475
    B. $500
    C. $526
    D. $620
A

Answer is A: Mode is the most commonly occurring value. $475 appears three times so is the mode.

41
Q
  1. A volume of urine is measured to be 325 ml using a measuring cylinder with a scale of smallest interval 5 ml. What is the absolute error in the measurement?
    A. ± 0.5 ml
    B. ± 1 ml
    C. ± 2.5 ml
    D. ± 5 ml
A

Answer is C: The absolute error is plus or minus half of the smallest scale interval (this means that the maximum error is this, but the actual error may be less). The interval is 5 ml, so 2.5 ml is half of this and equal to the absolute error.

42
Q
  1. A breath analyser unit to measure % blood alcohol content is accurate to ±0.005%. Which of the following displayed values will ensure that the reading is indeed greater than the legal driving limit of 0.05%?
    A. 0.06%
    B. 0.055%
    C. 0.05%
    D. 0.045%
A

Answer is A: An accuracy of ±0.005% means that for a displayed reading of 0.055%, the actual value may be as low as 0.055–0.005 = 0.05% or as high as 0.055 + 0.005 = 0.06%, hence will be between 0.05% and 0.06%. To ensure that the actual % blood alcohol concentration is in fact above 0.05%, the reading should be more than 0.005 above the limit of 0.05%.

43
Q
  1. Given that 1 mmHg = 0.133 kPa, how can a systolic BP measurement of 120 mmHg be converted to a measurement in kPa?
    A. Divide 120 by 0.133
    B. Multiply 120 by 0.133
    C. Divide 0.133 by 120
    D. Add 0.133–120
A

Answer is B: We know that 1 mmHg is the same as 0.133 kPa, so two of them would be 2 × 0.133 = 0.266 kPa. Hence 120 of them would be 120 × 0.133 = 16 kPa.

44
Q
  1. A newborn baby weighs 7 lb 8 oz (seven pounds and 8 oz). If 1 lb = 0.454 kg, what is done to convert the baby’s weight to kilograms?

A. Multiply 7.8 by 0.454
B. Divide 7.8 by 0.454
C. Divide 7.5 by 0.454
D. Multiply 7.5 by 0.454

A

Answer is D: You need to know that 8 oz is half a pound and that “a half” is the same as 0.5! Hence 7 lb 8 oz = 7.5 lb = 7.5×0.454 = 3.4 kg.

45
Q
  1. By Internet search, you discover that 1 in. (1′′) is the same as 2.54 cm. How would you convert a man’s waist girth (circumference) from 40′′ to centimetres?
    A. Multiply 40 by 2.54
    B. Divide 40 by 2.54
    C. Divide 2.54 by 40
    D. Multiply 40.1 by 2.54
A

Answer is A: You know that 1′′ is the same as 2.54 cm, so ten of them would be 10×2.54 = 25.4 cm. Hence 40 of them would be 40×2.54 = 110.6 cm.

46
Q
  1. A clinical thermometer is used to measure someone’s body temperature to be 101oF (Fahrenheit). When this temperature is converted to degrees Celsius using the conversion formula, T(°C) = (T(°F) – 32)×5/9, what is the correct value?
    A. −6.5
    B. 38.3
    C. 82
    D. 124
A

Answer is B: Centigrade temperature values above zero are always smaller than temperature Fahrenheit values values
T(°C) = (T(°F) – 32)×5/9 = (101–32)×5/9 = 69× /9 = 345/9 = 38.3 °C.

47
Q
  1. If you have 20/20 vision, you can see clearly at 20 ft what should normally be seen at that distance. Given that 1 ft = 0.305 m, what is 20 ft converted to metres?
    A. 2×30.5 = 61 m
    B. 20 ÷20 = 1 m
    C. 20÷0.305 = 65.6 m
    D. 20 × 0.305 = 6.1 m
A

Answer is D: If 1 ft is 0.305 m, ten of them would be 3.05 m and 20 of them would be as shown in choice D.

Animal Course Physiology Exam (15 decks)

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