Answer
a. $\frac{1}{8}\ in$
b. $\frac{1}{16}\ in.$
Work Step by Step
For the measurement $1\frac{5}{8}\ in$, we have
a. The precision is $\frac{1}{8}\ in$ because the last fraction $\frac{5}{8}$ has $\frac{1}{8}$th accuracy.
b. The greatest possible error is one-half the precision:
$$\frac{1}{2}\cdot \frac{1}{8}\ in = \frac{1}{16}\ in.$$
