How to Use Significant Figures

Significant figures are a technical way of writing numbers that give an indication of the accuracy of the equipment being used. They do this based on the number of significant figures present in the value retrieved from the equipment. They are an important part of maintaining accuracy when writing data in a technical manner.

Part 1
Part 1 of 3:

Determining the Number of Significant Figures

  1. For example, 105.32 has 4 nonzero digits.
  2. These do not count as significant figures, and do not contribute to the total number of significant figures in the value. Initial zeroes can be located both before and after the decimal point. For example, the zeroes in 0.0045 are not significant values.
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  3. Trailing zeroes are any string of zeroes at the end of a value. There are two different types of trailing zeroes, before and after the decimal point. Trailing zeroes before the decimal point (i.e. the 0s in 100) are not significant figures, while trailing zeroes after the decimal point (i.e. the 0 in 1.0) are significant.
  4. Any zeroes that are surrounded by significant figures on both sides are significant, even including other significant zeroes. For example, 100.3 has 4 significant figures, and 10.0 has 3 significant figures.
  5. For example, 100.3560 has 4 nonzero digits, 1 trailing zero, and 2 surrounding zeroes, therefore there are 7 significant figures in the value.
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Part 2
Part 2 of 3:

Adding and Subtracting With Significant Figures

  1. For example, in 1.03+2.341, 1.03 has 2 values and 2.341 has 3 values.
  2. For example, in the case of 1.03+2.341, the answer is 3.371.
  3. In 1.03+2.341, the answer 3.371 is rounded down to 3.37 since 1.03 has 2 digits.
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Part 3
Part 3 of 3:

Multiplying and Dividing with Significant Figures

  1. In 1.3x0.433, 1.3 has 2 significant figures while 0.433 has 3 significant figures.
  2. In 1.3x0.433, the answer is 0.5629, which has 4 significant figures.
  3. 1.3x0.433 is 0.5629, which is rounded to 0.56 because 1.3 has 2 significant figures.
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      References

      1. https://byjus.com/maths/significant-figures/
      2. https://www.khanacademy.org/math/arithmetic-home/arith-review-decimals/arithmetic-significant-figures-tutorial/v/significant-figures

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