MEP Pupil Text 1

Worked Example 3
Write each of the following numbers in normal decimal form.

(a) 3.217 × 10 3 (b) 3.68 × 10 5 (c) 4.7 × 10 − 4

Solution
(a) 3.217 × 10 3 = 3.217 × 1000
= 3217

(b) 3.68 × 10 5 = 3.68 × 100 000

= 368000

(c) 4.7 × 10 − 4 = 4.7 × 0.0 001

= 0.00 047

Most calculators can work with numbers in standard form. On a calculator display
3.01 × 1017 would look like

EXP NCalc FX

EE
Apple
Exercises
1. Write each of the following numbers in standard form.
(a) 47 000 4
. 7x10
*
(b) 52 100 5 21 X104
.
(c) 32 000 000 3 .
2 x/0

. 2x10
"

(d) 324 100 3 .

24/X/05 (e) 420 4
(f) 81 000 8 1x10
.

4
. 7x10"
(g) 5 000 5x10 (h) 47 000 000 000 (i) 3 200 000 000 3 .
2x109

(j) 0.000 62 (k) 0.0571

v
5 .
71X10 (l) 0.000 000 2 2x10-7
-

(m) 0.124 1 .
24X10 (n) 0.0371 3 71X10
.

(o) 0.000 21 2 .
1 x 10-4

(p) 0.000 07 TX10-s (q) 0.471 4 71 X10 (r) 0.0003

4
3x10
-

new .

2. Write each of these numbers in standard form.

X106 X103
(a) 1 million (b) 15 thousand (c) 6.4 million 6 .
4x10"
°

30 4X10 (EN) 4x 100

(d) 30.4 million (e) 4 million (f) 0.4 million
.

3 .
04X/0 (SN) 0 4x10
.
°
(EN)
HW 4X10" (SN)
3. Write each of the following numbers using normal decimal notation.

(a) 6 × 10 5 600000 (b) 4.31 × 10 2 431 (c) 5.86 × 10 7 58600000

(d) 8.3 × 10 − 4 0 .
00083
(e) 4.172 × 10 3 4172 (f) 6.42 × 10 − 5 0 000064 .

(g) 4.7 × 10 1 4 (h) 3.2 × 10 − 1 0 32.

(i) 8.47 × 10 − 4 0 .
000847

(j) 3.34 × 10 8334000000 (k) 3.471 × 10 − 4 0 .

0003471 (l) 8.421 × 10 2 842 / .

1 −6 −4
(m) 1.675 × 10 16 75
.

(n) 8.4 × 10 0 .
0000084 (o) 7.12 × 10 0 .
000712

17
 MEP Pupil Text 1

HW
4. For each of the numbers below state whether or not it is in standard form. If it is
not in standard form, write it in standard form.
Standard Form Not Not
(a) 3.2 × 10 8 (b) 43.2 × 10 2 4. 32 x103 (c) 15.6 × 10 − 8 1 56
. x 10 -

Not Standard Form Not

(d) 0.4 × 10 3 4 X102 (e) 1.3 × 10 − 8 (f) 0.7 × 10 − 4 7 X 10
-
5

Standard Form Not Standard Form

(g) 5.471 × 10 2 (h) 54.71 × 10 3 5 471x10
.
!

(i) 8.21 × 10 6

5. Give the answers to the following calculations in standard form.

4000 2 = 50 3 = 25x105
+

(a) 2000 × 30 = 6x10 (b) 1 6 x107

.
(c) 1 .

4 6
(d) (e) (f) 0.04 2 = x10-3
3 3

= = 1 6
-

4X10- 2x10
1000 3000
.

18
(g) 0.004 × 0.7 2=8 X10 3 (h) 22 × 400 = (i) =
20 000
-

(j) 30 2 = (k) 0.02 2 = (l) 100 2 =

6. There are 1000 m in 1 km. Convert the following distances to metres, giving your
answers in standard form.
(a) 50 km (b) 620 km (c) 1456 km

7. Find the number of:

(a) hours in a year (b) minutes in a week
(c) seconds in a day,
giving your answers in standard form.

1000m =
1km
8. The radius of the earth is 6370 km.
(a) Write this in a normal decimal form.
(b) Find the radius of the earth in metres and express it in both decimal
form and standard form. 6 37 X10
*

(c) Find the circumference of the earth in metres, giving the answer in
standard form. . 002 X10"m 4

9. The mass of the earth is 5.9 × 10 24 kg. Write this as a decimal number.

3
10. The width of a thin strip of metal is mm. Write this in standard form. 3x10-2
100

11. Scientists estimate the mass of a newly discovered planet as 482 000 000 kg.
Write this in standard form. . 82X109 4

12. The distance of the earth from the sun varies between 1.53 × 10 8 km and
1.47 × 10 8 km.
(a) Write these numbers in a decimal format.
(b) Convert both distances to metres and write them in standard form.
"
1 53 X10
.

"

1 . 47 X10

18
 MEP Pupil Text 1

HW
13. Carry out each of the following calculations on a calculator and write the answers
in standard form.

(a) 66 666 2 =
4 44X109
.

(b) 54 321 × 6 789 = 3 .

69x/08

(c) 2 000 3 = 8x10" (d) 640 000 × 240 000 =

"

1
. 54X10

(e) 88000 × 188000 = 1 65x1010 (f) .

56 000 ÷ 0.000 025 = 2 .
24X109

1.8 Calculations with Standard Form

When using standard form it is possible to multiply and divide numbers, taking advantage
of the form in which they are written.

Worked Example 1
Find
4 × 1018 × 3 × 10 4

Solution
To do this calculation, you multiply together the 4 and the 3 and then multiply together
the 1018 and the 10 4 .
4 × 1018 × 3 × 10 4 = 4 × 3 × 1018 × 10 4 ( )
= 12 × 10 22
23
M

This result is not in standard form so the final stage is to convert the result to standard
form.
12 × 10 22 = 1.2 × 10 × 10 22
= 1.2 × 10 23

4 × 1018 × 3 × 10 4 = 1.2 × 10 23

Worked Example 2
Find
32x103X5x10- T
(32X5)x(103x10-9)
(a) 3.2 × 10 4 × 5 × 10 − 3 = 160 = 1 .

(b)
6x18
(6 × 10 ) ÷ (3 × 10 ) 2x104
8 4

(c) (7.2 × 10 ) ÷ ( 6 × 10 )
3 4

72X102
= 12x102 = 1 .
2x10

Solution
*
6x10

(a) Multiply together the 3.2 and the 5 and then multiply together the 10 4 and
the 10 − 3 .

3.2 × 10 4 × 5 × 10 − 3 = 3.2 × 5 × 10 4 × 10 − 3
= 16.0 × 10 1

19
 MEP Pupil Text 1

3. Do the following using a calculator, giving your answers in standard form.

6 2 −2 2
(a) (4.2 × 10 ) = (b) (3.7 × 10 ) =
−5 3
(c) (1.2 × 10 ) = (d) 8.1 × 10 8 =
(e) 6.2 × 10 8 × 1.2 × 1014 = (f) 3.8 × 10 4 × 4.1 × 10 − 12 =
4.7 × 10 8
(g) (1.84 × 10 ) ÷ (1.92 × 10 ) =
6 7
(h)
3.2 × 10 5
=

1.62 × 10 − 5 3 × 10 8
(i) = (j) =
3.2 × 10 4 5 × 10 3
(k) 4.8 × 1011 + 3.2 × 1010 = (l) 6.8 × 1012 − 4.7 × 1010 =

4. There are 8.64 × 10 4 seconds in one day. How many seconds are there in:
(a) 10 days 8 64x105 (b) 1 week 6 .
048x105 (c) 1 year?
15576X/0
.

3 .

5. The mass of an electron is 9.1 × 10 − 31 kg. Find the mass of:

27 3 X 10-3
36 4X10" 63 7X10 236 37x10-
. -

73x10-12
.

3 64x100 .

18 2 32 8
.

(a) 3 × 10 electrons (b) 4 × 10 electrons 64

(c) 7 × 10 electrons.
.

3
.

3x1018 X 9 1x 10-31
.
4X1032X9 /X10-31 .
74108X9 1x10-3 .

6. A rectangle has sides of length 3 × 10 5 mm and 4.2 × 10 6 mm.

Find the area of the rectangle.
in m2

7. The speed of sound is 3.32 × 10 2 m s − 1 .

(a) How far would the noise from a 'bang' travel in:
(i) 10 seconds (ii) 3 × 10 3 seconds (iii) 4 × 10 − 2 seconds?

(b) How long would it take the noise from a 'bang' to travel:
(i) 10 metres (ii) 2 × 10 3 metres (iii) 2 × 10 − 2 metres?
HW
8. The speed of light is 3 × 10 8 m s − 1 .

(a) How far would light travel in 100 seconds? 3x10" m

(b) The mean distance of the earth from the sun is 1.5 × 1011 m.
How long does it take for light to travel from the sun to the earth? 5x102 sec

HW
9. The distance from the earth to the moon is 3.84 × 10 5 km.

(a) Find this distance in metres. 3 84X108

.

(b) How long would it take a spaceship to travel to the moon from earth if
. 6x105
9 sec
its average speed was 400 m s − 1 ? ↑

Investigation
Find four integers, a, b, c and d such that a 3 + b 3 + c 3 = d 3 .

21