1 A laboratory sample of gas is known to have a carbon monox

1. A laboratory sample of gas is known to have a carbon monoxide (CO) concentration of 50 parts per million (ppm). A spectrophotometer is used to take three independent measurements of this concentration. The three measurements, in ppm, are 49, 51, and 50.

Estimate the bias in a spectrophotometer measurement.

2. A laboratory sample of gas is known to have a carbon monoxide (CO) concentration of 50 parts per million (ppm). A spectrophotometer is used to take three independent measurements of this concentration. The three measurements, in ppm, are 49, 51, and 50.

Estimate the uncertainty in a spectrophotometer measurement.

(SHOW ALL STEPS CLEARLY AND NEATLY).

Solution

^{three measurements are regarded as a random sample from the population of possible measurement.}

^{the bias is equal to the mean of this population minus the true value of 50.}

^{bias=mean of three}