How many significant figures respectively do10 and 10.0 have?

Answer 1

10 could have 1 or 2 sig figs. There is no decimal point or information to distinguish further

10.0 has 3 sig figs.

Here are some useful rules that I use:

1. Zeros in the middle of a number are like any other digit; they are always significant.

Ex. 4.803 has four sig figs

2. Zeros at the beginning of a number are not significant; they act only to locate the decimal point

Ex. 0.00661 has three sig figs. it can be rewritten as 6.61 X 10-3

3. Zeros at the end of a number and after the decimal point are always significant. They indicate the accuracy of a measurement. Consider that it would not be included if it wasn't important!

Ex. 55.220 has five significant figures

4. Zeros at the end of a number and before the decimal point may or may not be significant. There is no decimal point and so it cannot be determined wither they are part of the measurement or just locate the decimal point! (think of 10, from your question) However, if other info is provided we can use some common sense. Say you are given: 20 degrees Celsius. It is likely that there are 2 sig figs, as 1 sig fig would provided an amount of accuracy that would make the measurement pretty useless (between 10 and 30 degrees Celsius!).

Ex. 34,200m may have three, four, or five sigs

This rule is a great example of why you will love it when scientific notation is used instead of ordinary notation.

John E. McMurry, Robert C. Fay, Chemistry 5th Edition. 2008. pgs 18-19

Answer 2

The number 10 has 1 significant figure, while the number 10.0 has 3 significant figures. Insignificant zeros at the beginning or end of a number are not counted, but zeros after a decimal point and between significant figures are counted.

Answer 3

There are 2 significant figure.

Answer 4

Three

Answer 5

2

Answer 6

3