To write the number 85,100 in scientific notation, you need to express it in the form of \( a \times 10^n \), where \( 1 \leq a < 10 \) and \( n \) is an integer.
- Move the decimal point in 85,100 so that there's only one non-zero digit to the left of the decimal. This gives us 8.51.
- Count how many places you moved the decimal point. In this case, you moved it 4 places to the left.
- Therefore, you write it as \( 8.51 \times 10^4 \).
Thus, the scientific notation for 85,100 is \( 8.51 \times 10^4 \).