How do I find the order of magnitude of a number?
2 Answers
The mathematical explanation is to take the base ten log of a number and floor it, however, that's just a fancy math way of saying count the digits before the decimal marker then take 1.
Orders of magnitude are approximately common logarithms of ratios of numbers, typically rounded to the nearest integer below.
If your number already represents a ratio, then take its common log.
Explanation:
If one number is
Orders of magnitude represent a comparison of scale, for example,
The "order of magnitude of
Note that orders of magnitude try not to exaggerate the scale, choosing to express that
If we are faced with a ratio like