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Uncertainty in Measurement: Accuracy and Precision

Uncertainty in Measurement: Accuracy and Precision

Scientists typically make repeated measurements of a quantity to ensure the quality of their findings and to evaluate both the precision and the accuracy of their results. Measurements are said to be precise if they yield very similar results when repeated in the same manner. A measurement is considered accurate if it yields a result that is very close to the true or the accepted value. Precise values agree with each other; accurate values agree with a true value.

Random and Systematic Errors

Random and Systematic Errors

Scientists always try their best to record measurements with the utmost accuracy and precision. However, sometimes errors do occur. These errors can be random or systematic. Random errors are observed due to the inconsistency or fluctuation in the measurement process, or variations in the quantity itself that is being measured. Such errors fluctuate from being greater than or less than the true value in repeated measurements. Consider a scientist measuring the length of an earthworm using a...

Language Development

Language Development

Children master language quickly and with relative ease, supported by both biological predisposition and reinforcement. B. F. Skinner (1957) proposed that language is learned through reinforcement, while Noam Chomsky (1965) argued that language acquisition mechanisms are biologically determined.
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...

Language and Cognition

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Language serves as a bridge between ideas and communication, influencing how individuals perceive and interact with the world. Psychologists have long debated whether language shapes thought or vice versa. This discussion gained grip with Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf in the 1940s, who proposed that language determines thought, a concept known as linguistic determinism. They suggested that the vocabulary and structure of a language influence how its speakers think and perceive reality.

Piaget's Stage 2 of Cognitive Development

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The preoperational stage, the second of Jean Piaget's four stages of cognitive development, spans approximately ages 2 to 7 and is characterized by the emergence of symbolic thinking. During this stage, children use language, images, and symbols to represent objects and concepts, enabling them to engage in imaginative and pretend play. This symbolic thinking supports children's ability to perform make-believe actions, such as imagining a broom as a horse or their hand as a phone, blending...

Learning Disabilities

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Learning disabilities are cognitive disorders caused by neurological impairments that affect cognitive functions like language and reading, without indicating overall intellectual or developmental challenges. These disabilities differ from global intellectual or developmental disabilities as they are limited to distinct cognitive functions. Common learning disabilities include dysgraphia, dyslexia, and dyscalculia, each of which impacts unique aspects of learning.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 11, 2026

Lexical Decision Task for Studying Written Word Recognition in Adults with and without Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment

Lexical Decision Task for Studying Written Word Recognition in Adults with and without Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment

Published on: June 25, 2019

Children's scale errors: A by-product of lexical development?

Beata J Grzyb¹, Angelo Cangelosi¹, Allegra Cattani¹

¹School of Psychology, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK.

Developmental Science

|August 31, 2018

Summary

Young children

Keywords:

conceptual development early talkers lexical development object representation scale errors

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Published on: June 30, 2020

Area of Science:

Developmental Psychology
Child Language Acquisition

Background:

Scale errors are observed when children attempt impossible actions due to object size.
Individual differences in scale errors suggest multiple contributing factors, including age and lexicon size.

Purpose of the Study:

To re-examine how body scale errors vary with age.
To explore the relationship between body scale errors and children's lexicon size and properties.

Main Methods:

Tested 125 children aged 18-30 months in a scale error elicitation.
Collected parental questionnaires on children's receptive and expressive lexicon.

Main Results:

Scale errors linearly decrease with age.
Scale errors are more prevalent in early talkers compared to less advanced language learners.
Evidence does not support an inverted U-shaped curve for body scale errors.

Conclusions:

Scale errors do not represent a distinct developmental stage.
The speed of linguistic and conceptual system development influences scale error prevalence, explaining individual variability.