Scientific
notation is a standard way of writing very large or very small
numbers so that they’re easier to compare and use in calculations.
To write in scientific notation, follow the form
N x 10^a , where N is a number between 1 and 10, but not 10 itself, and a is
an integer (positive or negative number).
For a positive exponent you would be
moving the decimal place to the left:
Example to write 457,000,000,000 in scientific notation,
Move the decimal to the left between
the 4 and 5, count the number of spaces the decimal moves and that is the
exponent.
To move the decimal between the 4
and 5 it moves 11 places so it would become 4.57 x 10^11
For a negative exponent move the
decimal to the right and count the number of places moved
Example 0.00000000088 becomes 8.8 x
10^-10
