Computer Accuracy
Accuracy of measurement in navigation depends very much on the situation. If a sailor's target is an island 200 km wide, sailing off center by 10 or 20 km is not a major problem. But, if the island were only 1 km wide, it would be missed if off just the smallest bit. Many of the measurements made while navigating involve angles, and a small error in the angle can translate to a much larger error in position when traveling long distances.
Students explore the differences between accuracy and precisionCopyright Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Precision_versus_accuracy.svg
One of the most useful tools in engineering is the computer. Some engineering mathematics are so complicated that problems would be impossible to solve without a computer. Computers help engineers determine how accurate and precise something must be to work correctly; engineers can save time and costs by avoiding over-designing systems to be more accurate and precise than necessary.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Understand the difference between accuracy, precision, and error.
- Recognize basic trigonometric functions and analyze functional relationships.
- Understand that math is fundamental to navigation