How to Understand Scientific Notation

Scientific notation can be a difficult mathematical concept, usually tackled in high school algebra and chemistry classes by young teens. Scientific notation serves as a kind of shorthand for use with astronomically large numbers and is a way of simplifying these numbers by multiples of 10. Using superscript, scientific notation can shorten a number dozens of digits long into a short equation of about 5 to 10 digits.

Instructions

1. Note that 10 x 10 = 100, and that 10 x 10 x 10 = 1,000. When dealing with multiplying 10s, the number of 10s that you multiply will be the number of zeros in your answer.

2. Note that the number 10^2 is shorthand for 10 x 10. Superscripts like the "2" in this number represent the number of times that 10 is multiplied by itself. So, 10^115 would equal 10 times itself 115 times.

3. Familiarize yourself with the standard scientific notation form: a x 10^b, where "a" is the first number in your large number and "b" is the number of digits on one side of the decimal in your large number.

4. Be aware that 5 x 10^6 is in scientific notation and equals (5 x 1,000,000), which equals 5,000,000.

5. Be aware that the process can be done in reverse as well, by making a large number into scientific notation instead of making the notation into a large number. So 5,650,000,000 equals the first number in the large number (5.65) multiplied by 10 times itself for every digit in the number after the first (9). So 5,650,000,000 equals (5.65 x 10^9).

References

• Algebra Online