Mastering Scientific Notation: Word Problems & Division

A scientist measures the mass of a small particle as 3.5 x 10^-9 grams. If she has 7.0 x 10^-3 grams of the same particle, how many particles does she have?

• 5000000

• 100000

• 1500000

• 2000000

A galaxy is estimated to contain 1.2 x 10^11 stars. If a telescope can observe 3.0 x 10^8 stars at a time, how many observations are needed to see all the stars in the galaxy?

• 500

• 200

• 300

• 400

The distance from Earth to a nearby star is about 4.2 x 10^16 meters. If a spaceship travels at a speed of 2.1 x 10^8 meters per hour, how many hours will it take to reach the star?

• 1 x 10^8 hours

• 2 x 10^8 hours

• 5 x 10^8 hours

• 3 x 10^8 hours

A bacterium can reproduce every 30 minutes, and one bacterium can become 1.0 x 10^6 bacteria in 5 hours. How many bacteria are there after 5 hours?

• 5.0 x 10^6

• 2.0 x 10^6

• 1.0 x 10^6

• 1.0 x 10^5

A computer can process 2.5 x 10^9 calculations per second. How many calculations can it process in 1.2 x 10^3 seconds?

• 1.2 x 10^10

• 2.5 x 10^11

• 4.0 x 10^12

• 3.0 x 10^12

A small company produces 1.5 x 10^4 widgets per day. If they operate for 2.0 x 10^2 days, how many widgets do they produce in total?

• 2.5 x 10^6

• 3.0 x 10^6

• 1.0 x 10^6

• 4.5 x 10^6

The volume of a water droplet is approximately 2.5 x 10^-6 liters. If a container holds 1.0 x 10^-2 liters, how many droplets can fit in the container?

• 1000

• 2500

• 5000

• 4000

A research study shows that the average human brain has about 1.0 x 10^11 neurons. If a scientist studies 2.5 x 10^9 neurons in a week, how many weeks will it take to study all the neurons?

• 20 weeks

• 60 weeks

• 80 weeks

• 40 weeks

A car can travel 6.0 x 10^5 meters on a full tank of gas. If the car uses 1.5 x 10^2 meters per liter of gas, how many liters of gas does it need for a full tank?

• 6000 liters

• 2500 liters

• 4000 liters

• 1500 liters

A smartphone can store 3.2 x 10^9 bytes of data. If a video file takes up 4.0 x 10^6 bytes, how many video files can the smartphone store?

• 1000

• 200

• 800

• 400