Scientific Notation

Scientific Notation In science, we deal with some very LARGE numbers: 1 mole = 602000000000000000000000 In science, we deal with some very SMALL numbers: Mass of an electron = 0.00000000000000000000000000000091 kg

M x 10n Scientific Notation Scientific Notation is a method of representing very large or very small numbers in the following form: M x 10n Where M represents a number between 1 and 10 Where n is an integer

Scientific Notation: Very Large Numbers Step 1: Insert an understood decimal point 2 500 000 000. Step 2: Decide where the decimal point must end so there is one number to its left

Scientific Notation: Large Numbers Step 3: Count how many places you move the decimal point 2 500 000 000. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Step 4: Re-write in the form M x 10n 2.5 x 109

Scientific Notation: Very Small Numbers 0.0000579 Step 2: Decide where the decimal must end so there is one number to the left

Scientific Notation: Very Small Numbers 0.0000579 Step 2: Decide where the decimal must end so there is one number to the left

Scientific Notation: Very Small Numbers 0.0000579 Step 3: Count how many places you want to move the decimal point

Scientific Notation: Very Small Numbers 0.0000579 Step 3: Count how many places you want to move the decimal point 1 2 3 4 5

Scientific Notation: Very Small Numbers 0.0000579 Step 4: Re-write in the form M x 10n 5.79 x 10-5 The exponent is negative because we started with a number less than 1

Scientific Notation: Adding and Subtracting If the exponents are the same, we simply add or subtract the numbers in front and bring the exponent down unchanged. 4 x 106 + 3 x 106 7 x 106

Scientific Notation: Adding and Subtracting If the exponents are not the same, we must move a decimal to make them the same. 4 x 106 + 3 x 105

Scientific Notation: Adding and Subtracting Move the decimal on the smaller number 4.0 x 106 4.0 x 106 + 3.0 x 105 + .3 x 106 4.3 x 106

Scientific Notation: Adding and Subtracting A problem for you to try: 2.37 x 10-6 + 3.48 x 10-4

Scientific Notation: Adding and Subtracting Here’s the answer: 0.0237 x 10-4 + 3.48 x 10-4 3.5037 x 10-4

Scientific Notation: Multiplying and Dividing Here’s how we multiply scientific notation: (2 x 106) x (7 x 103) Step 1: Multiply the base numbers 2 x 7 = 14

Scientific Notation: Multiplying and Dividing Here’s how we multiply scientific notation: (2 x 106) x (7 x 103) Step 2: Add the exponents 106+3 = 109

Scientific Notation: Multiplying and Dividing Here’s how we multiply scientific notation: (2 x 106) x (7 x 103) Step 3: Put the numbers back together (2 x 106) x (7 x 103) = 14 x 109

Scientific Notation: Multiplying and Dividing Here’s how we divide scientific notation: (12 x 106) ÷ (4 x 103) Step 1: Multiply the base numbers 12 ÷ 4 = 3

Scientific Notation: Multiplying and Dividing Here’s how we divide scientific notation: (12 x 106) ÷ (4 x 103) Step 2: Subtract the exponents 106-3 = 103

Scientific Notation: Multiplying and Dividing Here’s how we divide scientific notation: (12 x 106) ÷ (4 x 103) Step 3: Put the numbers back together (12 x 106) ÷ (4 x 103) = 3 x 103