Systematic or Random uncertainty

[sarahhawksey]

Right I have this question I need to answer. 2 people live several miles apart. Both monitor air temp in there back gardens.. Although they both using identical thermom with grad of 0.1 degree cel. over the years 1 persons thermometer has rotated slightly so only 1 degree cel are visible. They must each take a single representative reading of the temp everyday at noon (GMT). Persosn A takes 1 measurement per day at what he believes to be 12.00, for this they use a highly precise digital clock. However unbeknown to person A the clock is 5 minutes fast. Person B adopts a diff approach and always takes 10 separate measurements over the course of an hour in the middle of the day, depending on what they are doing, the measurement schedule is subject to some differences from day to day . Regardless Person B reduces the data to a single measurement and this is assumed to reflect the temp at 12.00..

The question is... Describe the nature and the relative size of the experimenatl uncertainties associated with the timing of Person A and Person B daily measurements.....

[TTG]

Is person A's thermometer in the shade or sun? That can have a big difference.

[Hymie]

Read the question carefully – the answer should only be in relation to the uncertainty of the measurement timings. Your answer should not mention any errors in relation to temperature readings.

Without giving the game away, the greatest uncertainty in the measurement timings of both person A & person B will be dependent on what they are doing day to day, rather than any clock errors.