To express the amount $15,528.23 in the form of \( a \times 10^n \), where \( a \) is a single digit, we first write the number in scientific notation.
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Identify the single digit coefficient \( a \):
- The amount is $15,528.23.
- We can rewrite it as \( 1.552823 \times 10^4 \) because moving the decimal point 4 places to the left makes it become 1.552823.
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Round \( a \) to one significant figure:
- Rounding \( 1.552823 \) to one significant figure gives us \( 2 \) (since the first digit after 1 is 5, we round up).
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Determine \( n \):
- From our previous step, we moved the decimal point 4 places to the left, so \( n = 4 \).
Putting it all together, we have: \[ 15,528.23 \approx 2 \times 10^4 \]
Thus, the final answer is: \[ \boxed{2 \times 10^4} \]