Question

NUMBER SENSE
Two numbers written in scientific notation have different powers of 10. Do you have to rewrite the numbers so they have the same power of 10 before multiplying

or dividing? Explain.

Answer 1

Step 1. If two numbers written in scientific notation then you don't need to rewrite the numbers so they have the same power of 10 before multiplying or dividing because we can perform multiplication or division between the digits first and then between powers . Then simplify the remaining part.

For Example

$=(4\times {10}^3)÷(2\times {10}^2)$

$=(4÷2)\times ({10}^3÷{10}^2)$

$=2\times {10}^{3-2}$

$=2\times {10}^1$

$=20$