Hey, when we solve for significant figures, why do we completely get rid of the remaining decimals even though hey have more accurate information?
Ex. 1.23*4.84=5.9532 but we would make it 5.95 based on Sig figs, even though those last two decimals are closer to the answer. Why is this? I know it’s less accurate, though it seems like we’re losing valuable accuracy (even if it’s not perfect, it should be closer)
In: Mathematics
> Hey, when we solve for significant figures, why do we completely get rid of the remaining decimals even though hey have more accurate information?
They don’t have more accurate information. They have more precise information but precision isn’t useful if you’re not actually on target.
> Ex. 1.23*4.84=5.9532 but we would make it 5.95 based on Sig figs, even though those last two decimals are closer to the answer.
But they are not closer to the answer.
1.23 means something between 1.225 and 1.235
4.84 means something between 4.835 and 4.845
So that means that 1.23 * 4.84 could be anything between ~5.92 (1.225 * 4.835) and ~5.98 (1.235 and 4.845). The answer of 5.95 is a lot closer to reflecting this reality than 5.9532 is.
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