View source for Error

{{Short description|Incorrect or inaccurate action}}
{{Other uses}}
{{pp-semi-indef}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{confusing|date=July 2011}}
{{more citations needed|date=April 2019}}
}}
An '''error''' (from the Latin {{Lang|la|errāre}}, meaning 'to wander'<ref name=":0">Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “error (n.), Etymology,” September 2023, {{doi|10.1093/OED/3627921224}}.</ref>) is an inaccurate or incorrect action, thought, or judgement.<ref name=":0" />

In [[statistics]], "error" refers to the difference between the value which has been computed and the correct value.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/a3121120.nsf/home/statistical+language+-+types+of+error|title=Statistical Language – Types of Error|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|access-date=June 10, 2018}}</ref> An error could result in [[failure]] or in a [[Deviation (statistics)|deviation]] from the intended performance or behavior.<ref>{{Cite book|title=European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) – EN 50128|publisher=CENELEC|year=2011}}</ref>

==Human behavior==
One reference differentiates between "error" and "mistake" as follows:
{{blockquote|An 'error' is a deviation from accuracy or correctness. A 'mistake' is an error caused by a fault: the fault being misjudgment, carelessness, or forgetfulness. Now, say that I run a stop sign because I was in a hurry, and wasn't concentrating, and the police stop me, that is a mistake. If, however, I try to park in an area with conflicting signs, and I get a ticket because I was incorrect on my interpretation of what the signs meant, that would be an error. The first time it would be an error. The second time it would be a mistake since I should have known better.<ref>Robinson, P. "In the Matter of:The Gatekeeper: The Gate Contracts"</ref>}}

In [[human behavior]] the norms or expectations for behavior or its consequences can be derived from the intention of the actor or from the expectations of other individuals or from a social grouping or from [[social norms]]. (See [[deviance (sociology)|deviance]].) Gaffes and faux pas can be labels for certain instances of this kind of error. More serious departures from social norms carry labels such as misbehavior and labels from the legal system, such as [[misdemeanor]] and [[crime]]. Departures from norms connected to religion can have other labels, such as [[sin]].

=== Language ===
{{Main|Error (linguistics)}}
An individual language user's deviations from standard language norms in [[grammar]], [[pronunciation]] and [[orthography]] are sometimes referred to as [[Error (linguistics)|errors]]. However, in light of the role of language usage in everyday [[social class]] distinctions, many feel that [[linguistics]] should restrain itself from such [[linguistic prescription|prescriptivist judgments]] to avoid reinforcing dominant class value claims about what linguistic forms should and should not be used. One may distinguish various kinds of linguistic errors<ref>''[http://www.stanford.edu/~zwicky/mistakes.pdf Mistakes] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025162154/http://www.stanford.edu/~zwicky/mistakes.pdf |date=2012-10-25 }},'' [[Arnold Zwicky]], 1980, Advocate Publishing Group, {{oclc|8468508}} The ISBN printed in the document (0-89894-030-5) is invalid, causing a checksum error</ref> – some, such as [[aphasia]] or [[speech disorder]]s, where the user is unable to say what they intend to, are generally considered errors, while cases where natural, intended speech is [[nonstandard dialect|non-standard]] (as in vernacular dialects), are considered legitimate speech in scholarly linguistics, but might be considered errors in prescriptivist contexts. See also [[Error analysis (linguistics)]].

[[File:PrintingError.jpg|thumb|480px|[[Herzliya Airport]] (Israel) [[runway]] location and [[Airfield traffic pattern|traffic pattern]] chart (left) was erroneously printed as a result of "black layer" 180° misplacement. The corrected chart is on the right. (Note north is to the right on both charts.)]]
[[File:Judas Bible2.jpg|thumb|240px|The [[Bible errata#King James|'Judas' Bible]] in St Mary's Church, [[Totnes]], [[Devon]]. In this edition 'Judas' appears instead of 'Jesus' in Matthew 26:36. This copy has the misprint corrected by a slip of paper pasted over it.<ref>According to a note in St Mary's Church, Totnes, Cornwall, UK</ref>]]

===Gaffe {{Anchor|Gaff|Gaffe}}===
<!--This section is linked from (the Dab) [[Gaff]]. It was noted here, from 09:24, 29 June 2007 to 24 May 2008, as linked from [[Spoonerism]], but the link in that article has been removed (probably wisely).-->
{{See also|Microphone gaffe|Political gaffe}}
A '''gaffe''' is usually made in a [[social environment]] and may come from saying something that may be true but inappropriate. It may also be an erroneous attempt to reveal a truth. Gaffes can be [[malapropism]]s, grammatical errors or other verbal and gestural weaknesses or revelations through [[body language]]. Actually revealing factual or social truth through words or body language, however, can commonly result in embarrassment or, when the gaffe has negative connotations, friction between people involved.

Philosophers and psychologists interested in the nature of the gaffe include [[Sigmund Freud]] ([[Freudian slip]]) and [[Gilles Deleuze]]. Deleuze, in his ''[[The Logic of Sense]]'', places the gaffe in a developmental process that can culminate in stuttering.

Sportswriters and journalists commonly use "gaffe" to refer to any kind of mistake, e.g. a dropped ball ([[baseball error]]) by a player in a baseball game.

==Science and engineering==
[[File:TrafficSignIsraelError.JPG|thumb|180px|Erroneous traffic sign in [[Israel]]. The correct sign is depicted on the lower-right corner.]]
{{See also|Observational error|Bias (statistics)|Measurement uncertainty}}

In [[statistics]], an [[errors and residuals|''error'' (or ''residual'')]] is not a "mistake" but rather a difference between a computed, estimated, or measured value and the accepted true, specified, or theoretically correct value.

In science and engineering in general, an error is defined as a difference between the desired and actual performance or [[behavior]] of a [[system]] or [[Object (philosophy)|object]]. This definition is the basis of operation for many types of [[control system]]s, in which error is defined as the difference between a set point and the process value. An example of this would be the thermostat in a home heating system – the operation of the heating equipment is controlled by the difference (the error) between the thermostat setting and the sensed air temperature. Another approach is related to considering a scientific hypothesis as true or false, giving birth to two types of errors: [[Type I and type II errors|Type 1 and Type 2]]. The first one is when a true hypothesis is considered false, while the second is the reverse (a false one is considered true).

[[Engineer]]s seek to design [[gadget|devices]], [[machine]]s and [[system]]s and in such a way as to mitigate or preferably avoid the effects of error, whether [[Hanlon's Razor|unintentional or not]]. Such errors in a system can be latent [[design]] errors that may go unnoticed for years, until the right set of circumstances arises that cause them to become active. Other errors in engineered systems can arise due to [[human error]], which includes [[cognitive bias]]. [[Human factors]] engineering is often applied to designs in an attempt to minimize this type of error by making systems more forgiving or [[error-tolerant]].

(In [[computational mechanics]], when solving a system such as ''Ax''&nbsp;=&nbsp;''b'' there is a distinction between the "error" – the inaccuracy in ''x'' – and [[Residual (numerical analysis)|residual]] – the inaccuracy in ''Ax''.)

A notable result of Engineering and Scientific errors that occurred in history is the [[Chernobyl disaster]] of 1986, which caused a nuclear meltdown in the City of [[Chernobyl]] in present-day [[Ukraine]], and is used as a case study in many Engineering/Science research <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.depts.ttu.edu/nsrl/About/research-highlights/chernobyl-summary/index.php|title=Chernobyl Research|publisher=[[Texas Tech University]]|work=Natural Science Research Laboratory}}</ref>

==Numerical analysis==
{{main| Approximation error}}
[[Numerical analysis]] provides a variety of techniques to represent (store) and compute [[approximation]]s to mathematical numerical values. Errors arise from a trade-off between efficiency (space and computation time) and precision, which is limited anyway, since (using common [[floating-point arithmetic]]) only a finite amount of values can be represented exactly. The discrepancy between the exact mathematical value and the stored/computed value is called the [[approximation error]].

==Cybernetics==
In applying corrections to the trajectory or course being steered, [[cybernetics]] can be seen as the most general approach to error and its correction for the achievement of any goal. The term was suggested by [[Norbert Wiener]] to describe a new science of control and information in the animal and the machine. Wiener's early work was on [[noise]].

The cybernetician [[Gordon Pask]] held that the error that drives a [[servomechanism]] can be seen as a difference between a pair of analogous concepts in a servomechanism: the current state and the goal state. Later he suggested error can also be seen as an innovation or a contradiction depending on the context and perspective of interacting (observer) participants. The founder of [[management cybernetics]], 
[[Stafford Beer]], applied these ideas most notably in his [[viable system model]].

==Biology==
{{main|mutation}}
In [[biology]], an ''error'' is said to occur when perfect fidelity is lost in the copying of [[information]]. For example, in an asexually reproducing species, an error (or mutation) has occurred for each [[DNA]] [[nucleotide]] that differs between the [[child]] and the [[parent]]. Many of these mutations can be harmful, but unlike other types of errors, some are neutral or even beneficial. Mutations are an important force driving [[evolution]]. Mutations that make organisms more adapted to their [[environment (biophysical)|environment]] increase in the population through [[natural selection]] as organisms with favorable mutations have more [[offspring]].

==Philately==
{{main|Errors, freaks, and oddities}}
In [[philately]], an ''error'' refers to a [[postage stamp]] or piece of [[postal stationery]] that exhibits a printing or production mistake that differentiates it from a normal specimen or from the intended result. Examples are stamps printed in the wrong color or missing one or more colors, printed with a vignette [[Inverted Jenny|inverted]] in relation to its frame, produced without any perforations on one or more sides when the normal stamps are perforated, or printed on the wrong type of paper. Legitimate errors must always be produced and sold unintentionally. Such errors may or may not be scarce or rare. A ''[[Postage stamp design error|design error]]'' may refer to a mistake in the design of the stamp, such as a mislabeled subject, even if there are no printing or production mistakes.

==Law==
{{main|Error (law)}}
In [[Appeal|appellate review]], error typically refers to mistakes made by a [[trial court]] or some other court of first instance in applying the law in a particular [[legal case]]. This may involve such mistakes as improper admission of [[Evidence (law)|evidence]], inappropriate [[Jury instruction|instructions]] to the [[jury]], or applying the wrong [[Legal burden of proof|standard of proof]].

==Stock market==
{{main article|Fat-finger error}}
A stock market error is a stock market transaction that was done due to an error, due to human [[failure]] or [[computer error]]s.

==Governmental policy==
Within United States government intelligence agencies, such as [[Central Intelligence Agency]] agencies, ''error'' refers to ''intelligence error'', as previous assumptions that used to exist at a senior intelligence level within senior intelligence agencies, but has since been disproven, and is sometimes eventually listed as unclassified, and therefore more available to the [[General public|public]] and [[citizenry]] of the United States. The [[Freedom of Information Act (United States)|Freedom of information act]] provides American citizenry with a means to read intelligence reports that were mired in error. Per United States Central Intelligence Agency's website (as of August, 2008) intelligence error is described as:

"Intelligence errors are factual inaccuracies in analysis resulting from poor or missing data; intelligence failure is systemic organizational surprise resulting from incorrect, missing, discarded, or inadequate hypotheses."<ref>United States Central Intelligence Agency. [https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/books-and-monographs/analytic-culture-in-the-u-s-intelligence-community/chapter_1.htm Analytic Culture in the U.S. Intelligence Community] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100607111923/https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/books-and-monographs/analytic-culture-in-the-u-s-intelligence-community/chapter_1.htm |date=2010-06-07 }}. Retrieved August 30, 2008.</ref>

==Numismatics==
In [[numismatics]], an ''error'' refers to a [[coin]] or [[medal]] that has a minting mistake, similar to errors found in philately. Because the U.S. [[Mint (coin)|Bureau of the Mint]] keeps a careful eye on all potential errors, errors on U.S. coins are very few and usually very scarce. Examples of numismatic errors: extra metal attached to a coin, a clipped coin caused by the coin stamp machine stamping a second coin too early, double stamping of a coin. A coin that has been overdated, e.g. 1942/41, is also considered an error.

==Linguistics==
{{main|Error (linguistics)}}

In [[applied linguistics]], an error is an unintended deviation from the immanent rules of a [[variety (linguistics)|language variety]] made by a [[second language]] learner. Such errors result from the learner's lack of knowledge of the correct rules of the target language variety.<ref>{{cite book |last= Ellis |first= Rod |author-link=Rod Ellis |title=The Study of Second Language Acquisition |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3KglibyrZ5sC&pg=PA700 |year=1994 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=[[Oxford]] |isbn= 0-19-437189-1 |page=700}}</ref> A significant distinction is generally made between ''errors'' (systematic deviations) and ''mistakes'' ([[speech error|speech performance errors]]) which are not treated the same from a linguistic viewpoint. The study of learners' errors has been the main area of investigation by linguists in the history of [[second-language acquisition]] research.{{sfn|Ellis|1994|p=43}}

==Medicine==
A [[medical error]] is a preventable adverse effect of care ("iatrogenesis"), whether or not it is evident or harmful to the patient. This might include an inaccurate or incomplete diagnosis or treatment of a disease, injury, syndrome, behavior, infection, or other ailment.

The word ''error'' in medicine is used as a label for nearly all of the clinical incidents that harm patients. Medical errors are often described as [[human error]]s in healthcare.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Zhang J |author2=Pate, VL |author3=Johnson TR |year=2008 |title=Medical error: Is the solution medical or cognitive? |journal=Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association |volume=6 |issue=Supp1 |pages=75–77 |doi=10.1197/jamia.M1232|pmid=12386188 |pmc=419424 }}</ref> Whether the label is a medical error or human error, one definition used in medicine says that it occurs when a [[health care|healthcare]] provider chooses an inappropriate method of care, improperly executes an appropriate method of care, or reads the wrong [[CT scan]]. It has been said that the definition should be the subject of more debate. For instance, studies of hand hygiene compliance of physicians in an ICU show that compliance varied from 19% to 85%.<ref name="negligence">{{cite journal |title=Hand washing and physicians: how to get them together |vauthors=Salemi C, Canola MT, Eck EK |date=January 2002 |pmid=11868890 |doi=10.1086/501965 |volume=23 |issue=1 |journal=Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol |pages=32–5|s2cid=18663388 }}</ref>{{update after|2016|6|22}} The deaths that result from infections caught as a result of treatment providers improperly executing an appropriate method of care by not complying with known safety standards for hand hygiene are difficult to regard as innocent accidents or mistakes.

There are many types of medical error, from minor to major,<ref name="mederror">{{cite journal |last1=Hofer |first1=TP |last2=Kerr |first2=EA |last3=Hayward |first3=RA |title=What is an error? |journal=Effective Clinical Practice |date=2000 |volume=3 |issue=6 |pages=261–9 |pmid=11151522 |url=http://www.acponline.org/journals/ecp/novdec00/hofer.htm |access-date=June 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928004341/http://www.acponline.org/journals/ecp/novdec00/hofer.htm |archive-date=September 28, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and causality is often poorly determined.<ref name="mederror2">{{cite journal |doi=10.1001/jama.286.4.415 |title=Estimating Hospital Deaths Due to Medical Errors: Preventability Is in the Eye of the Reviewer |last1=Hayward |first1=Rodney A. |last2=Hofer |first2=Timothy P. |date=July 25, 2001 |journal=JAMA |volume=286 |issue=4 |pages=415–20 |pmid=11466119}}</ref>{{update after|2016|6|22}}

There are many taxonomies for classifying medical errors.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kopec |first1=D. |last2=Tamang |first2=S. |last3=Levy |first3=K. |last4=Eckhardt |first4=R. |last5=Shagas |first5=G. |title=The state of the art in the reduction of medical errors |journal=Studies in Health Technology and Informatics |date=2006 |volume=121 |pages=126–37 |pmid=17095810}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Div col}}
*[[Blooper]]
*[[Blunder (chess)]] – Error in chess that severely worsens the player's position
*[[Error detection and correction]]
*[[Fallacy]] – Error in reasoning
*[[Margin of error]]
*[[Nonconformity (quality)|Nonconformity]] – Production quality terminology 
*[[Perfection]]
*[[Trial and error]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
{{wiktionary}}
*[https://www.accuracyproject.org/cbe-errors-books.html Errors contained in reference books – Internet Accuracy Project]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Error| ]]
[[Category:Human communication]]
[[Category:Measurement]]
[[Category:Broad-concept articles]]