This is the seventh, and final, part in a series of notes that will help teachers understand what SI is and how to use it in a common-sense way. This part addresses the numerical issues of conversion and uncertainty. In this section, the discussion will go beyond specific details of SI and give some hints about how taking full advantage of the features of the decimal system that is implied by use of SI may influence the teaching of measurement. Many details will remain to be filled in by the reader or teacher.
Calculations with data, especially when performed with calculators, frequently give results that contain ridiculously many digits. It is therefore necessary to understand which of the digits in data-taking and in calculations are meaningful and useful in specifying the result of the calculation.
The decimal nature of SI and the scales on the instruments usually makes it...
