Significant Figures and Rounding: A Closer Look

What is the process of rounding a number to a specific number of significant figures?

How can we determine whether to round up or drop the remaining digits when rounding a number?

Rounding a Number in Significant Figures

When rounding a number to a specific number of significant figures, we look at the digit in the next smallest place value. If this digit is 5 or greater, we round up the last significant digit. If the digit is less than 5, we simply drop the remaining digits.

Significant figures play a crucial role in representing the precision of a measurement. When we are required to round a number to a certain number of significant figures, we focus on the digit right after the desired significant figure. If this digit is 5 or greater, we round up the last significant digit. If the digit is less than 5, we leave the last significant digit unchanged.

For example, let's consider the number 546.85 grams. If we need to round this number to 3 significant figures, we look at the digit in the fourth decimal place, which is 8. Since 8 is 5 or greater, we round up the third decimal place to get 547.

Therefore, the rounded number of 546.85 grams to 3 significant figures is 547 grams.

Understanding how to round numbers to significant figures is essential in various scientific fields such as chemistry, physics, and engineering. It helps ensure the accuracy and precision of calculations and measurements.