http://www.ck12.org Chapter 26. Physics Glossary
26.8 S
scalar
A quantity, such as mass, length, or speed, that is completely specified by its magnitude or size and has no
direction.
scientific method
A systematic approach used to investigate the natural world.
significant digits
Those digits in a measurement that carry reliable measurement information.
SI units
The International System of Units (SI) defines seven units of measure as a basic set from which all other SI
units are derived. These SI base units and their physical quantities are: meter for length, kilogram for mass,
second for time, ampere for electric current, kelvin for temperature, candela for luminous intensity, and mole
for the amount of substance.
systematic error
A consistent error usually associated with a calibration error or reading error, NOT detected by multiple
readings.