The size of a hydrogen atom is about 1.2×10−10

Question

m across. The size of an oxygen atom is 0.000000000152 m across. What is the difference between the sizes of these atoms in scientific notation?(1 point)
Responses

3.2 ×10−10
m
3.2 times 10 superscript negative 10 baseline m

2.72×10−10
m
2.72 times 10 superscript negative 10 baseline m

3.2×10−11 
m
3.2 times 10 superscript negative 11 baseline m

3.2×10−9
 m
3.2 times 10 superscript negative 9 baseline  m
Skip to navigation

Answer 1

To find the difference between the sizes of the hydrogen atom and the oxygen atom, we first need to express both sizes in a consistent format:

1. The size of a hydrogen atom is given as \(1.2 \times 10^{-10} , \text{m}\).
2. The size of an oxygen atom is given as \(0.000000000152 , \text{m}\), which can be converted to scientific notation as \(1.52 \times 10^{-10} , \text{m}\).

Next, to find the difference in size, we perform the subtraction:

\[ 1.2 \times 10^{-10} , \text{m} - 1.52 \times 10^{-10} , \text{m} = (1.2 - 1.52) \times 10^{-10} , \text{m} = -0.32 \times 10^{-10} , \text{m} \]

Now, we need to express this in proper scientific notation. Since the result is negative, we can also express it as:

\[ -0.32 \times 10^{-10} , \text{m} = -3.2 \times 10^{-11} , \text{m} \]

However, ignoring the negative sign as it’s not mentioned in the options, the equivalent positive difference in scientific notation is:

\[ 3.2 \times 10^{-11} , \text{m} \]

Therefore, the response is:

3.2×10−11 m