Scientific notation in math is a way to write very large or very small numbers in a more concise (expressing much in few words) form. It’s often used in science, where numbers can be really big or really small. In scientific notation, a number is written as a coefficient multiplied by 10 raised to a power.
Ex: 3,000,000 can be written in scientific notation as 3 x 10^6.
This form makes it easier to work with such numbers in calculations and comparisons.
0.000000256 m -> spacing inside a computer chip: The very small number can be written in scientific notation to make the number seem smaller.
Ex: 0.000000256 = 2.56 × 10 -7
- When the number is on the right side of the decimal point, the exponent is written as a negative number. If the number is on the left hand side, the exponent are written as a positive.