Question

During the school year, each student planted 1.2x10^2 flowers as part of a community service project. If there are 1.5x10^3 students in the school, how many flowers did they plant in total

Answer 1

180,000 flowers

Explanation:

first simplify the expressions

1.2x10^2=1.2x100=120

so each student planted 120 flowers

1.5x10^3=1.5x1000=1500

so there are 1500 students

now multiply the number of students by the number of flowers each student planted

1500 x 120 = 180,000 flowers in total

Answer 2

1.8× 10⁵ or 180,000 flowers

Explanation:

To calculate the total number of flowers planted by each student, we multiply the number of flowers planted per student by the number of students:

Total flowers planted = Flowers planted per student × Number of students

In this case:

• Flowers planted per student = 1.2 × 10²
• Number of students = 1.5 × 10³

Substituting the values given in the question, we get:

Total flowers planted = 1.2 × 10² × 1.5 × 10³

= 1.2 × 1.5 × 10² × 10³

= 1.8 × 10² × 10³

To multiply two powers with the same base, we add their exponents:

`\sf 1.8 * 10^(2+3)`

= 1.8 × 10⁵

Therefore, the students planted a total of 1.8× 10⁵ or 180,000 flowers.