Hi, I am getting very frustrated. I am doing an online homework for chemistry and it's telling me to round to the nearest WHOLE number.
So the answer I got was -1435.650....
And I typed in -1436. and said I was wrong and so I tried it again and typed 1.4 x 10^3, wrong again. The answer they gave was 1.44 x 10^3
Another problem: answer was -3623.895556
So I tried the answer -3.62 x 10^3, wrong.
The answer was -3.624 x 10^3
How do you round to whole numbers? I keep on getting these problems wrong just because I don't round correctly. Help please!
I agree that -1435.65 rounded to nearest whole number = -1436 or -1.436 * 10^3.
Although it is rare, sometimes book answers are in error. Check with your teacher.
However, I would agree with -3.624 * 10^3 for the second problem.
I understand your frustration with rounding numbers in your chemistry homework. Rounding can be tricky, but I can explain the process to help you understand how to round to the nearest whole number.
When rounding to the nearest whole number, you need to look at the digit immediately to the right of the decimal point. If this digit is 5 or greater, you round up by increasing the whole number by 1. If the digit is less than 5, you simply drop the decimal portion and keep the whole number unchanged.
Let's walk through the examples you provided:
1) -1435.650:
The digit immediately to the right of the decimal point is 6. Since it is 5 or greater, you round up by increasing the whole number by 1. Therefore, -1435.650 rounds to -1436 as a whole number.
2) -3623.895556:
The digit immediately to the right of the decimal point is 8. Again, it is 5 or greater, so you round up by increasing the whole number by 1. Therefore, -3623.895556 rounds to -3624 as a whole number.
In both cases, the answers given (-1436 and -3624) are correct rounded whole numbers.
To summarize, when rounding to the nearest whole number, look at the digit immediately to the right of the decimal point. If it is 5 or greater, round up by increasing the whole number by 1. If it is less than 5, drop the decimal portion and keep the whole number unchanged.
I hope this explanation helps, and good luck with your chemistry homework!