A strand of hair has an average mass od 2.17 x 10^-5 ounces. A grain of rice has an average mass of 0.002 ounces. How much heavier is a grain of rice than a strand of hair? Express your answer in scientific notation.
To find out how much heavier a grain of rice is than a strand of hair, we need to subtract the mass of the strand of hair from the mass of the grain of rice:
0.002 ounces - 2.17 x 10^-5 ounces
Converting 0.002 to scientific notation, we get 2 x 10^-3. So the calculation becomes:
2 x 10^-3 ounces - 2.17 x 10^-5 ounces = 1.9783 x 10^-3 ounces
Therefore, a grain of rice is approximately 1.98 x 10^-3 ounces heavier than a strand of hair.