The U.S. national debt was $2.9617×1013 in 2021 and $3.98×1011 in 1971. Find how much the debt increased in the 50-year period. (1 point)

Responses

$2.9219×1013
2.9219 dollars times 10 superscript 13 baseline

$1.0183×1024
1.0183 dollars times 10 superscript 24 baseline

$3.0015×1013
3.0015 dollars times 10 superscript 13 baseline

$2.9219×1011

1 answer

To find how much the debt increased, we need to subtract the debt in 1971 from the debt in 2021.

Debt increase = Debt in 2021 - Debt in 1971
Debt increase = $2.9617×10^13 - $3.98×10^11

Simplifying this expression gives us:
Debt increase = $2.9617×10^13 - $0.398×10^13

Subtracting the two values gives us:
Debt increase = $2.9617×10^13 - $0.0398×10^13

Combining like terms, we get:
Debt increase = $2.9219×10^13

Therefore, the debt increased by $2.9219×10^13 in the 50-year period.

The correct answer is $2.9219×10^13.