Suchergebnisse

This is the second of two papers on measurement models in sociology. The concepts of Ordinal Graph and Ordinal Simplex are elaborated and their applicability to some major theoretical problems outlined.

This open access book proposes a conceptual framework for understanding measurement across a broad range of scientific fields and areas of application, such as physics, engineering, education, and psychology. It addresses contemporary issues and controversies within measurement in light of the framework, including operationalism, definitional uncertainty, and the relations between measurement and computation, and describes how the framework, operating as a shared concept system, supports understanding measurement's work in different domains, using examples in the physical and human sciences. This revised and expanded second edition features a new analysis of the analogies and the differences between the error/uncertainty-related approach adopted in physical measurement and the validity-related approach adopted in psychosocial measurement. In addition, it provides a better analysis and presentation of measurement scales, in particular about their relations with quantity units, and introduces the measurand identification/definition as a part of the "Hexagon Framework" along with new examples from the physical and psychosocial sciences. Researchers and academics across a wide range of disciplines including biological, physical, social, and behavioral scientists, as well as specialists in measurement and philosophy appreciate the work's fresh and provocative approach to the field at a time when sound measurements of complex scientific systems are increasingly essential to solving critical global problems.

Within the European Union network "Antenna Center of Excellence" – ACE (2004-2007), two intercomparison campaigns among different European measurement systems, using the 12 GHz Validation Standard (VAST12) antenna, were carried out. These campaigns are described in the companion paper "Dedicated measurement campaign for definition of accurate reference pattern of the VAST12 antenna". The second campaign was performed by Technical University of Denmark (DTU) in Denmark, SAAB Microwave Systems in Sweden and Technical University of Madrid (UPM) in Spain. This campaign consisted of a large number of measurements with slightly different configurations in each of the three institutions (2 spherical near field systems and one compact range). The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the accuracy of the different facilities using this large number of acquisitions. The acquisitions were performed systematically varying in applied scanning scheme, measurement distances, signal level and so on. The results are analyzed by each institution combining the measurement results in near or far field and extracting from these measurements: a "best" pattern, an evaluation of possible sources of errors (i.e. reflections, mechanical and electrical uncertainties) and an estimation of the items of the uncertainty budget.