MHB Round To Two Significant Digits

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Rounding to two significant digits means retaining only the first two non-zero digits of a number, regardless of its decimal or whole number status. For example, rounding 542,867.21054031 results in 5.4 x 10^5. This process does not equate to rounding to two decimal places or the tens place; it focuses on the significance of the digits. Understanding significant digits is crucial for accurate scientific and mathematical communication. Researching this topic can provide further clarity on rounding rules and applications.
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What does it mean to round to TWO SIGNIFICANT DIGITS?

SAMPLE:

Round 542,867.21054031 to two significant digits.

Does this means to round to two decimal places or does it mean to round to the tens place?
 
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RTCNTC said:
What does it mean to round to TWO SIGNIFICANT DIGITS?

SAMPLE:

Round 542,867.21054031 to two significant digits.

Does this means to round to two decimal places or does it mean to round to the tens place?

$5.4 \times 10^5$

recommend you research the topic of significant digits ...

Rounding and Significant Digits | Purplemath
 
skeeter said:
$5.4 \times 10^5$

recommend you research the topic of significant digits ...

Rounding and Significant Digits | Purplemath

1. Thank you for the link provided.

2. I also found some helpful youtube clips.
 
Thread 'Erroneously finding discrepancy in transpose rule'

Thread 'Erroneously finding discrepancy in transpose rule'

Obviously, there is something elementary I am missing here. To form the transpose of a matrix, one exchanges rows and columns, so the transpose of a scalar, considered as (or isomorphic to) a one-entry matrix, should stay the same, including if the scalar is a complex number. On the other hand, in the isomorphism between the complex plane and the real plane, a complex number a+bi corresponds to a matrix in the real plane; taking the transpose we get which then corresponds to a-bi...
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