Understanding National Debt and Scientific Notation

The video tutorial explains the U.S. national debt as of February 2, 2010, estimated at 12 trillion dollars, and the U.S. population at over 300 million. It guides viewers through calculating the per-person share of the national debt using scientific notation, dividing the total debt by the population. The tutorial demonstrates the calculation process, including adjusting numbers to fit scientific notation standards and converting the result to decimal notation, concluding that each person owes approximately $39,790.

What was the estimated U.S. national debt on February 2, 2010, in scientific notation?

• 1.2278 x 10^13

• 1.2278 x 10^15

• 1.2278 x 10^14

• 1.2278 x 10^12

What is the approximate U.S. population according to the Census Bureau's estimate?

• 3.086 x 10^6

• 3.086 x 10^7

• 3.086 x 10^9

• 3.086 x 10^8

How do you calculate the per-person share of the national debt?

• Multiply the total debt by the population

• Divide the total debt by the population

• Add the total debt to the population

• Subtract the population from the total debt

What is the result of dividing 10^13 by 10^8?

• 10^6

• 10^5

• 10^4

• 10^3

What is the result of 1.2278 divided by 3.086 rounded to four decimal places?

• 0.3978

• 0.3979

• 0.3980

• 0.3981

Why is 0.3979 not considered proper scientific notation?

• It is not a decimal

• It is less than 1

• It is not a whole number

• It is greater than 10

How can you adjust 0.3979 x 10^5 to be in proper scientific notation?

• Multiply by 100

• Add 10

• Divide by 10

• Multiply by 10

What is the per-person debt in scientific notation after adjustment?

• 3.979 x 10^5

• 3.979 x 10^3

• 3.979 x 10^6

• 3.979 x 10^4

What is 3.979 x 10^4 in decimal notation?

• $3,979,000

• $3,979

• $39,790

• $397,900

What does the per-person national debt amount to in dollars?

• $3,979,000

• $3,979

• $39,790

• $397,900