ELI5-What does the ‘e’ in large calculations mean, and why does it only appear in a calculator and not when one actually solves problems?

Question

ELI5-What does the ‘e’ in large calculations mean, and why does it only appear in a calculator and not when one actually solves problems?

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Answer 1

It is short for “exponent” or “exponential form”. It appear in calculators because it is easier to display 1.9773e30 than 1.9773*10^(30) which is the *proper* way to write it. You save two characters by replacing the whole *10 with just the ‘e’ *and* don’t need to bother with a method of displaying superscript. It only exists because calculator manufacturers are cheap.