What is 800,000,000 in scientific notation?

1 Answer
Feb 14, 2017

#800,000,000. = 8. xx 10^8#

Explanation:

Scientific notation is a way of writing very big or very small numbers quickly, easily and accurately, without having to write lots of zeros.

If a zero is added on or left off by mistake, it changes the answer by a factor of 10!

We use the powers of 10, which are #10, 100, 1000, 10,000 ... #

These are written as #10, 10^2, 10^3, 10^4 ....#

We multiply the powers of 10 by a number to show how many of a certain power of 10 we are using.

#600 = 6 xx 100 = 6 xx 10^2#

#9,000,000 = 9 xx 1,000,000 = 9 xx 10^6#

You will see that the number of zeros is the same as the index.

Sometimes there is more than one non-zero digit to consider:

#7,250,000 = 7.25 xx 1,000,000 = 7.25 xx 10^6#

There must only be ONE digit before the decimal point.

To change a number to scientific notation:
Count how many places the decimal point must move.

#800,000,000. = 8. xx 10^8#

The point was moved 8 places to the left until it was just to the right of the #8#.