Q:if x= 2x10^5 and y=3x10^-3 correct to one significant figure,find the greatest and least possible value of:
i)x/y
To find the greatest and least possible value of x/y, we can substitute the values of x and y and perform the calculations.
Given:
x = 2 x 10^5
y = 3 x 10^-3
To express these values correctly to one significant figure:
x ≈ 2 x 10^5 (since 2 has one significant figure)
y ≈ 0.003 (since 0.003 has one significant figure)
Now, we can calculate x/y:
x/y = (2 x 10^5) / (0.003)
To simplify this, we divide the numbers and subtract the exponents:
x/y = (2 / 0.003) x (10^5 / 1)
Next, let's simplify the numerical part first:
x/y = (2 / 0.003) ≈ 666.66... or 6.7 (rounded to one significant figure)
Finally, we multiply the numerical value by the powers of 10:
x/y ≈ 6.7 x 10^5
Therefore, the greatest possible value of x/y is approximately 6.7 x 10^5.
To find the least possible value of x/y, we consider the values that round down to one significant figure:
x/y = (2 / 0.003) ≈ 666.666... or 6.7 (rounded to one significant figure)
Again, multiplying by the powers of 10:
x/y ≈ 6.7 x 10^5
Hence, the least possible value of x/y is approximately 6.7 x 10^5, which is the same as the greatest possible value in this case.