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Practice Quiz: Sig Fig Multiplication & Division
Enhance accuracy and confidence through engaging exercises
Use this quiz to practice sig fig multiplication and division and get your rounding right. Solve 20 short problems to build speed and accuracy, then see where you need more review before a test or lab. You will work with real numbers and round to the correct number of significant figures.
Study Outcomes
- Analyze numerical values to identify proper significant figures in multiplication and division.
- Apply rules of significant figures to solve exam-style practice problems.
- Evaluate measurement precision by maintaining correct significant figure usage.
- Calculate outcomes with appropriate significant figures in multi-step calculations.
- Enhance test readiness through consistent application of significant figure principles.
Sig Fig Multiplication & Division Cheat Sheet
- Match sig figs in multiplication and division - In multiplication and division, your result should carry the same number of significant figures as the measurement with the fewest. For example, 3.16 (3 sig figs) × 0.307 (3 sig figs) × 5.7 (2 sig figs) is rounded to 2 sig figs.
- Practice spotting significant figures - Get comfortable identifying which digits count. For instance, in 0.0030681 the first three zeros are just placeholders, so there are five significant figures (3, 0, 6, 8, 1).
- Remember trapped zeros are significant - Any zero between non-zero digits always counts. In 5.029, all four digits are significant because that zero sits right between the 5 and 2.
- Ignore leading zeros - Zeros at the start of a number just mark the decimal place and aren't significant. So 0.0030681 still has only five significant figures.
- Round only the final answer - Keep all your extra digits during calculations to avoid rounding errors, then round off only your final result to the correct sig figs. This trick helps you stay precise and accurate!
- Apply rules step by step in multistep problems - For mixed operations, do multiplication/division first (apply sig fig rules), then addition/subtraction (apply decimal place rules). It's like following a recipe in the right order!
- Use scientific notation for clarity - Express very big or tiny numbers in scientific notation to show exactly how many sig figs you mean. For example, 0.00045 becomes 4.5 × 10❻❴ (2 sig figs).
- Tackle practice problems - The more you practice, the more natural sig figs become. Try multiplying 35.6 by 42: since 35.6 has 3 sig figs and 42 has 2, your answer should have 2 sig figs.
- Count exact numbers as infinite sig figs - Exact counts (like 5 apples) or defined quantities (1 dozen) don't limit precision. They're considered to have an infinite number of significant figures.
- Stay consistent for reliable results - Use sig fig rules consistently in every step of your calculations. Consistency is your cheat code for accuracy and precision in chemistry!