Which expression equals 16,300?

Which expression equals 16,300?

• A. 1.63 x 10 to the 4th
• B. 1.63 x 10 to the negative third power
• C. 163 x 10 to the negative second power
• D. 16.3 x 10 to the 4th

Answer: (A)

Converting numbers to scientific notation involves adjusting where the decimal point sits and choosing an exponent that reflects the scale. For 16,300, move the decimal four places to the left to get 1.63. Because you moved it four places, the exponent is 4, giving 1.63 × 10^4, which equals 16,300. The other options don’t fit: using a negative exponent would produce a very small number, not 16,300; 163 × 10^-2 equals 1.63; and 16.3 × 10^4 equals 163,000, which is too large.

Converting numbers to scientific notation involves adjusting where the decimal point sits and choosing an exponent that reflects the scale. For 16,300, move the decimal four places to the left to get 1.63. Because you moved it four places, the exponent is 4, giving 1.63 × 10^4, which equals 16,300.

The other options don’t fit: using a negative exponent would produce a very small number, not 16,300; 163 × 10^-2 equals 1.63; and 16.3 × 10^4 equals 163,000, which is too large.