Final answer:
In scientific notation, a number is expressed by writing the first nonzero digit, followed by a decimal point, and then the rest of the digits. The coefficient of a number in scientific notation must be greater than or equal to 1 and less than 10. In the given example, the coefficient is 17.2, which is greater than 10, making the number not in correct scientific notation.
Step-by-step explanation:
Scientific notation is a way of writing numbers that are too large or small to be conveniently written as a decimal. In scientific notation, a number is expressed by writing the first nonzero digit, followed by a decimal point, and then the rest of the digits. The part of the number in scientific notation that is multiplied by a power of 10 is called the coefficient. To be in correct scientific notation, the coefficient must be greater than or equal to 1 and less than 10. In the given example, 17.2 times 10 to the 4th power is not in correct scientific notation because the coefficient, 17.2, is greater than 10. The coefficient should be written as 1.72 for the number to be in correct scientific notation.