For an experiment on specific heat capacities my data for measured specifi heats was consistently higher than the accepted values. I am not sure why this is. Would it be because my initial temperature that I started the experiment with was higher than it should have been?

Thank you for you help!

2 answers

That could be A reason but that isn't the only one. Think about how you did the experiment. If you used a standard like benzoic acid that could have been impure or it was weighed incorrectly. The final temperature may have not been recorded correctly. I would think it could be any one of several reasons (or a combination).
Thank you!