The size of a hydrogen atom is about 1.2 x 10^-10m across. The size of an oxygen atom is 0.00000000152 m across. What is the difference between the sizes of these atoms in scientific notation?

Answer 1

To find the difference between the sizes of these atoms, we subtract the size of the hydrogen atom from the size of the oxygen atom:

0.00000000152 m - 1.2 x 10^-10 m

To keep the same units, we need to express the size of the hydrogen atom as 0.00000000012 m:

0.00000000152 m - 0.00000000012 m

To subtract these values, we align the decimals:

0.00000000152
- 0.00000000012

The result is:

0.00000000140 m

In scientific notation, this is approximately 1.4 x 10^-9 m.