Scientific notation is a convenient way of expressing very large numbers. It would be impractical to write a number such as 300,000,000,000 especially when you have to use it again and again in your calculations. Thus, we usually express them in scientific notations. To shortcut the numbers, we take at least three of its numbers and express the rest in terms of exponents of 10. Negative exponents of 10 mean that these are very small numbers. You would have to move the decimal places from right to left. On the other hand, positive exponents of 10 are very large numbers. You have to move the decimal point to the right. Let's apply these to the following problems:
A. 2.54×10⁻³ cm
You start on the decimal point between 2 and 5. Since the exponent is -3, move the decimal point the left three times. The longhand form is 0.00254 cm.
B. 9.5×10⁴ km
Moving the decimal point 4 units to the right will result to the longhand form of 95,000 km.
C. 3.3×10⁻¹ L
Move the decimal point 1 unit to the left: 0.33 L
D: 7.445×10² g
Move the decimal point 2 units to the right: 7,445 g.
