
Uncertainty and Error 67
Test o ut these formulae and convince yourself that the random and indepen-
dent errors work out to be equal to or smaller than the worst-case errors.
4.4.3 Other Common Situations
Two frequently occurring situatio ns involve the measured quantity a ± δa
operated on by an e xact number to produce z ± δz. When a is multiplied by
the exact number E to pro duce z (z = Ea), the new error is predictably given
by:
δz = |E|δa Exact multiplication (4.6)
When a is raised to the exact power E to produce z (z = a
E
), the new
uncertainty is given by:
δz
|z|
= |E|
δa
|a|
Exact power law (4.7)
There are no separate worst a nd independent errors in ...