Question

Compare 9 x 104 and 5 x 103.

a.5 x 103 is 4 times larger than 9 x 104
b.9 x 104 is 18 times larger than 5 x 103
c.9 x 104 is 8 times larger than 5 x 103
d.9 x 104 is 5 times larger than 5 x 103

Answer 1

A

Explanation:

Answer 2

b.9 x 10^4 is 18 times larger than 5 x 10^3
This is a simple matter of floating point division. So let's do that. 9 x 10^4 / 5 x 10^3 First, divide the significands. Giving 9 / 5 = 1.8 And subtract the exponents 4 - 3 = 1 So the result of the division is 1.8 x 10^1 which is 18. So 9x10^4 is 18 times larger than 5x10^3. Now looking at the available options, it's obvious that only "b" is correct.