Lab 1A

Lab 1A

Introduction: 
The goal of this lab was to determine the mass of a plastic block by using a given density and measurements for the volume by using a centimeter ruler. Density is how compact a material is and can be found using the formula: Density=Mass/Volume

Procedure:
 We measured the length, width and height of the block using a centimeter ruler to determine the volume. We then multiplied the density by the volume to determine the mass. Next, we took the block to the scale to determine how far off our calculated mass was from the actual mass. Luckily, we were under the 2% off range on our first try so we did not have to repeat the procedure.

Data:

• Length: 7.5 cm.
• Width: 3.3 cm.
• Height: 2.4 cm.
• Calculated volume: 59.4 cm.^3
• Density(given): 1.42 g/cm^3
• Experimental Mass: 84.3 grams
• Actual Mass: 85.0
• Percent error: .8%

Conclusion:

We fulfilled the lab successfully on our first try. Possible error could have been in the measurement of our block, as even being off by a few millimeters would have effected our result. This lab gave us a better understanding of the formula for density and how to calculate it when not given all the information.