Question

Kendra finds the dimensions of a sticky note. She uses a meter stick to determine that the dimensions are 1.25 x 10 to the negative eighth power meters wide by 2.5 x 10 to the negative six power meters long. Use scientific notation to write the dimensions in millimeters. Note: 1 meter is equal to 1,000 millimeters.

Answer 1

To convert the dimensions from meters to millimeters, we can use the fact that \( 1 \) meter is equal to \( 1000 \) millimeters, or \( 1 \times 10^3 \) mm.

1. **Convert the width:**
\[
\text{Width} = 1.25 \times 10^{-8} \text{ meters}
\]
Converting to millimeters:
\[
1.25 \times 10^{-8} \text{ m} \times 1000 \text{ mm/m} = 1.25 \times 10^{-8} \text{ m} \times 1 \times 10^3 \text{ mm/m} = 1.25 \times 10^{-5} \text{ mm}
\]

2. **Convert the length:**
\[
\text{Length} = 2.5 \times 10^{-6} \text{ meters}
\]
Converting to millimeters:
\[
2.5 \times 10^{-6} \text{ m} \times 1000 \text{ mm/m} = 2.5 \times 10^{-6} \text{ m} \times 1 \times 10^3 \text{ mm/m} = 2.5 \times 10^{-3} \text{ mm}
\]

Now we can summarize both dimensions in scientific notation in millimeters:
- Width: \( 1.25 \times 10^{-5} \) mm
- Length: \( 2.5 \times 10^{-3} \) mm

Thus, the dimensions of the sticky note in millimeters are:
- Width: \( 1.25 \times 10^{-5} \) mm
- Length: \( 2.5 \times 10^{-3} \) mm