Chapter 23) Technique-22, Evidence Based on Measurements, and Estimates of Magnitude, with Related Concepts

Techniques for Documenting with Proof or Supporting Evidence, and Related Strategies for Problem Solving

Chapter 23) Technique-22, Evidence Based on Measurements,

And Estimates of Magnitude, with Related Concepts

This e-book presents 28 techniques for supporting the validity of the statements you write.

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Topic 1.) Technique 22) Evidence Based on Measurements, and Estimates of Magnitude. 3

Subtopic, What are the Measurements and/or Estimates of Magnitude that are Relevant to Your Writing Project?. 5

Subtopic: How to Find the Measurements You Need for a Writing Project 7

Additional and Supporting Information for This chapter, from Web-Based Articles. 9

Additional and Supporting Information for This Chapter, from Web-Based Videos. 10

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Topic 1.) Technique 22) Evidence Based on Measurements, and Estimates of Magnitude

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Technique-22, measurements, and estimates based on magnitude, include all of the following, based on the way the terminology is used in this topic:

Measurements or estimates of length, width, height, volume, weight, mass, density, velocity, acceleration, force, energy, power, and time, EXAMPLE: The above can involve supporting evidence in a business report, for the purchase of a heavy-duty tractor. This would involve physical dimensions of the tractor, as proof that it would fit in the available storage space. The horsepower of the tractor would be supporting evidence, that it is suitable for heavy-duty construction.

Any type of statistical calculation or estimate that involve size, or magnitude, EXAMPLE: This can involve statistical calculations or estimates of the size and distance of a star in another galaxy.

Survey of a population, or a set of entities, EXAMPLE: This can involve supporting evidence that predicts specific candidate will win an election, such as in a newspaper or magazine article.

Any type of testing that involves numbers, such as test scores, a number rating scale, or grades that can be represented as numbers, EXAMPLE: This can involve supporting evidence in a report, to admit a new student into a graduate program, based on the student’s grades and test scores.

Measurements, calculations, or estimates involving probability, such as to evaluate risks, or the chances of a successful outcome, EXAMPLE: This can involve supporting evidence in a safety report, which indicates the need for maintenance, or modification in industrial equipment, to reduce the risk of accidents. It can also involve supporting evidence for investments, based on estimates of financial gain.

Calculations, or estimates of expenses, or cost of a project, EXAMPLE: This can involve supporting evidence in a feasibility study that shows that the project is reasonable. It can also involve evidence showing that the project is excessively expensive.

Estimates of financial gains or losses, EXAMPLE: This can involve supporting evidence in a report, for investing in a new business, or supporting evidence for closing a business that appears to be failing.

Subtopic, What are the Measurements and/or Estimates of Magnitude that are Relevant to Your Writing Project?

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The following questions represent factors to consider when writing a document that might require measurements or estimates of magnitude.

What should I measure, and/or what should I estimate? This of course depends on the document your writing, or the problem or goal that you are dealing with. Measurements in the hard sciences often involve, acceleration, density, energy, force, frequency, mass, pH, power, temperature, time, velocity, viscosity, and wavelength. In the social sciences, measurements often involve statistical evaluations, such as survey results, behavioral and psychological test scores. For additional information see the following web-based sources:

Measurements in Biology, The Metric System and Data Analysis

The Physics Hypertextbook

Measurements in Chemistry

Understanding Psychological Measurement

Understanding Levels and Scales of Measurement

MEASUREMENTS AND SOCIOLOGY

What system should I use to present my measurements and/or estimates of magnitude? For example, this can involve the Metric System, which involves kilometers, meters, centimeters, kilograms, grams, and milligrams. Alternatively, it could involve the Imperial System, which involves miles, yards, feet, inches, pounds, and ounces. For additional information see the following:

Base Units of the International System (SI)

The International System,

Fundamentals of Physics/Physics and Measurement, and

British Imperial System

Measurement in the Social Sciences

The Journal of Methods and Measurement in the Social Sciences

Measurement Scales in Social Science Research

How should measurements and estimates be displayed? The data can be displayed in the text, in a separate table, and several other ways.

How accurate is my measurements? Measurements are never perfectly accurate, but it must be accurate enough for the specific document, problem, or goal. For example, if the measurements involve the space available for new furniture, plus or minus 0.25 inches would be adequate. However, if the measurements involve the creation of components to manufacture microscopes, 1/100 of an inch would be an inadequate level of precision. For additional information see the following:

Measurement and Uncertainty Notes

Science NetLinks Estimation and Measurement

Measurements and Error Analysis

Percent Error Formula

Subtopic: How to Find the Measurements You Need for a Writing Project

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Often the writer has to rely on published sources for measurements. This is especially true in the hard sciences. Google and Bing, are excellent search engines for obtaining answers to questions that involve measurement. See www.Google.com and www.bing.com Another good alternative is Wolfram Alpha Computational Knowledge Engine the homepage of their website is at www.wolframalpha.com The wolfram Alpha Engine is especially useful when you need precise answers that change with time. For example, Alpha Engine provided a precise answer to the following question: “How old is Donald Trump?” From Wolfram Alpha: 70 years 9 months 8 days Google provided: 70 years June 14, 1946 The answer from Wolfram Alpha changes daily, and if you click on the above link, the answer will be different than the answer I obtained.

Presented below there are some examples of measurements obtained with web-based searches: You can click on the blue underlined words to obtain the source of the information.

Google: What is the distance from the Earth to the sun? Answer 92.96 million mi

Bing: Current distance from Earth to Sun is 92.6 million miles (149 million km, 0.99 au)

Google: “How far is the Moon from the Earth” Answer 238,900 mi

Google: “How far is Mars from the Earth” Answer 401 million km apart (249 million miles)

Bing: “How far is Mars from the Earth” Current: 204.8 million miles (329.5 million km)

Google: How far is the nearest star from Earth? Answer 4.37 light years

Google: What is the mass of the sun? Answer 1.989 × 10^30 kg

Google: What is the mass of the moon? Answer 7.34767309 × 10²² kilograms

Google: “What is the mass of Mars” Answer 6.39 × 10^23 kg

Bing: “What is the mass of Mars” Mars has a mass of 6.4169 x 1023 kg

Google: “What is the mass of the Earth” 5.972 × 10^24 kg

Google:“How tall is the Statue of Liberty” Answer 305′