Scientific Notation

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Scientific Notation
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What is scientific notation

• Use of powers of 10 in writing a number is called
  scientific notation.
• Such number have the form M x 10n

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How do we determine M?

• Determine M by shifting the decimal point in the
  original number to the left or to the right until
  only one non-zero digit is to the left of it. M
  should contain only the significant figures of
  the original number.

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How do we determine n?

• Determine n by counting the number of places the
  decimal point has been shifted. If the decimal
  point has been shifted to the left, n is
  positive. If the decimal point has been shifted
  to the right, n is negative.

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Examples

• 1250 is written 1.25 x 103 in scientific
  notation.
• 0.0000044 is written 4.4 x 10-6 in scientific
  notation.