Hi, I really need some help with scientific notation. How do I convert large numbers like 108,000,000 and other numbers that are even larger than this to scientific notation? This is for a math project and even though I learned about this, it's still hard for me to understand this. Somebody please help me! :/
starting at the decimal point (or the rightmost digit if there is none), count how many places left you have to move the point till the number is between 1 and 10 (less than 10).
Note that 10^0 = 1
108,000,000 = 108,000,000 x 10^0
108,000 x 10^3
108 x 10^6
10.8 x 10^7
1.08 x 10^8
That is the scientific notation.
42376.3 = 4.23763 x 10^4
since we had to move the decimal point 4 places to the left to make the multiplier less than 10.
This works the other way as well, using negative exponents.
0.0023 = 2.3 x 10^-3
because we moved 3 places to the right.
Of course, I can help you with that! Converting large numbers to scientific notation involves expressing the number in the form of a coefficient multiplied by a power of 10. Here's how you can do it step by step:
Step 1: Start by writing down the given number. In your case, the number is 108,000,000.
Step 2: Determine the decimal point's position in the original number. Count the number of digits from the leftmost digit to the rightmost non-zero digit. In this case, we have 9 digits.
Step 3: Rewrite the number by moving the decimal point to the left or right so that you have a coefficient between 1 and 10. To do this, count the number of places you move the decimal point. In your example, you need to move the decimal point seven places to the left to get 1.08.
Step 4: Finally, write the coefficient (1.08) multiplied by 10 raised to the power of the number of places you moved the decimal point. Since you moved the decimal point seven places to the left, the power of 10 will be 7.
Putting it all together, the number 108,000,000 expressed in scientific notation is 1.08 x 10^8.
I hope this explanation helps you with your math project! Remember to count the digits and move the decimal point to get your coefficient between 1 and 10. Let me know if you have any further questions.