{"id":245554,"date":"2024-10-14T16:00:04","date_gmt":"2024-10-14T08:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/?p=245554"},"modified":"2025-06-16T13:05:46","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T05:05:46","slug":"physical-quantity-measurements-3-steps-to-estimate-area-of-irregular-shapes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/physical-quantity-measurements-3-steps-to-estimate-area-of-irregular-shapes\/","title":{"rendered":"Physical Quantity & Measurements: 3 Steps To Estimate Area of Irregular Shapes"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.21.0″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.21.0″ hover_enabled=”0″ z_index_tablet=”500″ custom_css_main_element=”sub,||sup {||font-size: 75%;||line-height: 0;||position: relative;||vertical-align: baseline;||}||sup {||top: -0.5em;||}||sub {||bottom: -0.25em;||}” global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n

Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n

When asked to calculate the area of regular shapes like rectangles or circles, you can use the formulas l x w<\/em> or \u03c0<\/em>r<\/em>2<\/sup>\u00a0.<\/p>\n

However, how do you solve Physics questions that ask you to compute for the area of irregular shapes?<\/p>\n

In this Physics blog post, I will be teaching you a trick that you can use when solving this Physical Quantity & Measurements question.<\/p>\n

You can also watch our explainer video here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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Read Also:<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. [Secondary 1 Science Explainer Video] Physical Quantity & Measurements: Estimating Area Of Irregular Shapes\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  2. Solutions & Suspensions: Understanding Solubility-Temperature Graphs<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n

    Let’s Take A Look At This Physics Question<\/h2>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Source: Fuhua Secondary School \u2013 2017 Physics S1NA SA1 Examination Paper [Q7]<\/span><\/em>
    <\/p>\n\n

    <\/p>\n

    In cases wherein the object has an irregular shape, it is not possible for us to use a formula.<\/p>\n

    So what are we going to do?<\/p>\n

    We can trace the outline of the object on graph paper or any paper with grid boxes as shown in the diagram below.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Source: Fuhua Secondary School \u2013 2017 Physics S1NA SA1 Examination Paper [Q7]<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

    Once we have traced out the outline of the irregular-shaped object, we can follow the following steps!<\/p>\n

    Step 1<\/h2>\n

    Count the number of boxes where the object has occupied more than half of the area of the grid box.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

    <\/h2>\n

    Let us look at the first row.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Source: Fuhua Secondary School \u2013 2017 Physics S1NA SA1 Examination Paper [Q7]<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

    Are there any boxes where the object occupied more than half of the area?<\/p>\n

    No! So we are not going to count any of the boxes in the first row.<\/p>\n

    Now let us begin counting the boxes from the second row onwards.<\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    \n

    \ud83c\udfc5<\/span>\u00a0Tip When Counting The Boxes <\/span><\/strong>\ud83c\udfc5<\/span><\/p>\n

    Instead of a tick, use numbers<\/span> to label the boxes where the object occupies more than half of the space. This helps you <\/span>save time because in case you lose count, you won\u2019t have to start counting all over again!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    There are 24 boxes!<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Some of you may be wondering if you can take the encircled boxes together to form one box.<\/p>\n

    As tempting as that is, the answer is no! This is actually a common error made by many students.<\/p>\n

    \n

    \ud83d\udd22 Remember This When Counting The Boxes<\/strong> \ud83d\udd22<\/p>\n

    We cannot count any box where the area is only less than half-filled.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    Let us move on to the next step.<\/p>\n

    Step 2<\/h2>\n

    Find the area of each box.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/h2>\n

    Let us check the dimensions given in the question.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Source: Fuhua Secondary School \u2013 2017 Physics S1NA SA1 Examination Paper [Q7]<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    It\u2019s 1 cm by 1 cm.<\/p>\n

    So what\u2019s the area of each box?<\/p>\n

    It is 1 cm2<\/sup>\u00a0.<\/p>\n

    Step 3<\/h2>\n

    Multiply the number of boxes we counted in step (1) and the area of each box that we computed in step (2)<\/span>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    <\/h2>\n

    24 x 1 cm2<\/sup> will give us 24 cm2<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    Suggested Answer For Q7<\/h2>\n

    Option (2)<\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    Common Errors Made By Students<\/h2>\n

    Remember to always check the area of each grid box. Do not assume that it\u2019s always 1 cm2<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

    Some questions will trick you by giving boxes with different dimensions.<\/p>\n

    Let\u2019s try changing the question now and make the size of each grid box 2 cm by 2 cm. What will be the estimated area of the figure?<\/p>\n

    The number of boxes where the object has occupied more than half of the area of the grid box remains 24.<\/p>\n

    Meanwhile, the area of each box will be 4 cm2<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

    24 x 4 cm2<\/sup> = 96 cm2<\/sup><\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    Conclusion<\/h2>\n

    Unlike regular shapes like circles and squares, you cannot use a formula when solving for the area of irregular shapes.<\/p>\n

    However, you can follow the three steps we listed above:<\/p>\n

    1\ufe0f\u20e3 Count the number of boxes where the object has occupied more than half of the area of the grid box.<\/p>\n

    2\ufe0f\u20e3\u00a0Find the area of each box.<\/p>\n

    3\ufe0f\u20e3\u00a0Multiply the number of boxes we counted in step (1) and the area of each box that we computed in step (2).<\/p>\n

    Also, read the question carefully for the dimensions and do not assume that the area of each grid box is always 1 cm2<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

    Keep a lookout for more Secondary 1 Physics blog posts!<\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row disabled_on=”off|off|off” admin_label=”CCI” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ custom_margin=”0px||” custom_padding=”0px||” saved_tabs=”all” collapsed=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_divider color=”#898989″ admin_label=”Divider” _builder_version=”4.16″ locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/The-Pique-Lab-CCI-Science-Course-CTA.png” align=”center” align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” admin_label=”CCI” _builder_version=”4.16″ z_index_tablet=”500″ global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ text_font_size=”18px” text_orientation=”center” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

    If you like our methodology, we’ve some upcoming workshops:<\/p>\n

    [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.21.0″ text_font=”geomanist-medium||||||||” text_text_color=”#f44a4a” text_font_size=”18px” text_line_height=”2em” text_orientation=”center” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

    S1 Complete Concept Integration\u2122 Physics Course<\/strong><\/a>
    S1 Complete Concept Integration\u2122 Chemistry Course<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

    [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    In this article, we will be analysing a question on Physical Quantity & Measurements from the 2017 Fuhua Secondary School (FHSS) S1NA SA1 Examination Paper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":245555,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[68,50,74],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"modified_by":"Jaimie Aberia","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245554"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=245554"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245554\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":246584,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245554\/revisions\/246584"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/245555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=245554"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=245554"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=245554"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thepiquelab.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=245554"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}