SIGNIFICANT DIGITS AND

THE SCIENTIFIC NOTATION

LESSON 13
 About the Lesson
 This is a lesson on significant digits and the
scientific notation combined. The use of
significant digits and the scientific notation is
often in the area of measures and in the natural
sciences. The scientific notation simplifies the
way we write very large and very small
numbers. On the other hand, numerical data
become more accurate when significant digits
are taken into account.
 Objectives:
 In this lesson, you are expected to :
1. determine the significant digits in a given
situation.
2. write very large and very small numbers in
scientific notation
LESSON PROPER
I. A. Activity

 The following is a list of numbers. The number of significant digits

in each number is written in the parenthesis after the number.
234 (3) 0.0122 (3)
745.1 (4) 0.00430 (3)
6007 (4) 0.0003668 (4)
1.3 X 102 (2) 10000 (1)
7.50 X 10-7 (3) 1000. (4)
0.012300 (5) 2.222 X 10-3 (4)
100.0 (4) 8.004 X 105 (4)
100 (1) 6120. (4)
7890 (3) 120.0 (4)
4970.00 (6) 530 (2)

Describe what digits are not significant.

______________________________
 Important Terms to Remember
 Significant digits are the digits in a number that
express the precision of a measurement rather
than its magnitude. The number of significant
digits in a given measurement depends on the
number of significant digits in the given data.
In calculations involving multiplication,
division, trigonometric functions, for example,
the number of significant digits in the final
answer is equal to the least number of
significant digits in any of the factors or data
involved.
Rules for Determining Significant Digits
A. All digits that are not zeros are significant.
For example: 2781 has 4 significant digits
82.973 has 5 significant digits
B. Zeros may or may not be significant. Furthermore,

1. Zeros appearing between nonzero digits are

significant.
For example: 20.1 has 3 significant digits 84
79002 has 5 significant digits
2. Zeros appearing in front of nonzero digits are not
significant.
For example: 0.012 has 2 significant digits
0.0000009 has 1 significant digit
3. Zeros at the end of a number and to the right of a
decimal are significant digits. Zeros between nonzero
digits and significant zeros are also significant.
For example: 15.0 has 3 significant digits
25000.00 has 7 significant digits
4. Zeros at the end of a number but to the left of a decimal
may or may not be significant. If such a zero has been
measured or is the first estimated digit, it is significant.
On the other hand, if the zero has not been measured or
estimated but is just a place holder it is not significant. A
decimal placed after the zeros indicates that they are
significant
For example: 560000 has 2 significant digits
560000. has 6 significant digits
Significant Figures in Calculations
1. When multiplying or dividing measured quantities,
round the answer to as many significant figures in the
answer as there are in the measurement with the least
number of significant figures.
2. When adding or subtracting measured quantities, round
the answer to the same number of decimal places as there
are in the measurement with the least number of decimal
places.
For example:
a. 3.0 x 20.536 = 61.608
Answer: 61 since the least number of significant digits is
2, coming from 3.0
b. 3.0 + 20.536 = 23.536
Answer: 23.5 since the addend with the least number of
decimal places is 3.0
 II. Questions to Ponder
( Post-Activity Discussion )
Describe what digits are not significant. The digits that
are not significant are the zeros before a non-zero digit and
zeros at the end of numbers without the decimal point.
Problem 1. Four students weigh an item using different
scales. These are the values they report:
a. 30.04 g
b. 30.0 g
c. 0.3004 kg
d. 30 g
How many significant digits are in each measurement?
Answer: 30.04 has 4 significant; 30.0 has 3 significant
digits; 0.3004 has 4 significant digits; 30 has 1 significant
digit
 Problem
  2. Three students measure volumes of water
with three different devices. They report the following
results:
Device Volume
Large graduated cylinder 175 mL
Small graduated cylinder 39.7 mL
Calibrated buret 18.16 mL

On the Scientific Notation

The speed of light is 300 000 000 m/sec, quite a large
number. It is cumbersome to write this number in full.
Another way to write it is . How about a very small
number like 0.000 000 089? Like with a very large
number, a very small number may be written more
efficiently. 0.000 000 089 may be written as .
 Writing a Number in Scientific Notation
  
1. Move the decimal point to the right or left until after the first
significant digit and copy the significant digits to the right of the
first digit. If the number is a whole number and has no decimal
point, place a decimal point after the first significant digit and
copy the significant digits to its right.
For example, 300 000 000 has 1 significant digit, which is 3.
Place a decimal point after 3.0
The first significant digit in 0.000 000 089 is 8 and so place a
decimal point after 8, (8.9).
2. Multiply the adjusted number in step 1 by a power of 10, the
exponent of which is the number of digits that the decimal point
moved, positive if moved to the left and negative if moved to the
right.
For example, 300 000 000 is written as because the decimal
point was moved past 8 places.
0.0 000 089 is written as because the decimal point was moved 8
places to the right past the first significant digit 8.
III. EXERCISES
A. Determine the number of significant digits in the following
measurements. Rewrite the numbers with at least 5 digits in scientific
notation.
1. 0.0000056 L 6. 8207 mm
2. 4.003 kg 7. 0.83500 kg
3. 350 m 8. 50.800 km
4. 4113.000 cm 9. 0.0010003 m3
5. 700.0 mL 10. 8 000 L

B. a. Round off the following quantities to the specified number of

significant figures.
1. 5 487 129 m to three significant figures
2. 0.013 479 265 mL to six significant figures
3. 31 947.972 cm2 to four significant figures
4. 192.6739 m2 to five significant figures
5. 786.9164 cm to two significant figures

b. Rewrite the answers in (a) using the scientific notation

C. Write the answers to the correct number of significant figures
1. 4.5 X 6.3 ÷ 7.22 __________________________
2. 5.567 X 3.0001 ÷ 3.45 __________________________
3. ( 37 X 43) ÷ ( 4.2 X 6.0 ) __________________________
4. ( 112 X 20 ) ÷ ( 30 X 63 ) __________________________
5. 47.0 ÷ 2.2 __________________________

D. Write the answers in the correct number of significant figures

1. 5.6713 + 0.31 + 8.123 __________________________
2. 3.111 + 3.11 + 3.1 __________________________
3. 1237.6 + 23 + 0.12 __________________________
24. 43.65 – 23.7 __________________________
5. 0.009 – 0.005 + 0.013 __________________________
E. Answer the following.
1. A runner runs the last 45m of a race in 6s. How many
significant figures will the runner's speed have?
2. A year is 356.25 days, and a decade has exactly 10
years in it. How many significant figures should you
use to express the number of days in two decades?
3. Which of the following measurements was recorded
to 3 significant digits : 50 mL , 56 mL , 56.0 mL or
56.00 mL?
4. A rectangle measures 87.59 cm by 35.1 mm. Express
its area with the proper number of significant figures
in the specified unit: a. in cm2 b. in mm2
5. A 125 mL sample of liquid has a mass of 0.16 kg.
What is the density of the liquid in g/mL?
 Summary

In this lesson, you learned about significant

digits and the scientific notation. You learned
the rules in determining the number of
significant digits. You also learned how to
write very large and very small numbers using
the scientific notation.