Final answer:
The question involves mathematics, focusing on ensuring the divisor is a whole number during division. A common technique is to multiply both the dividend and divisor by the same power of 10, which maintains the equality while simplifying the operation. It is also important to limit the number of significant figures in the result.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question pertains to the process of simplifying a division problem by ensuring that the divisor is a whole number. In mathematics, particularly during division, the divisor should ideally be a whole number to simplify the calculation process.
If the divisor is not a whole number, both the dividend and the divisor can be multiplied by the same factor to convert them into whole numbers without changing the equality of the division. This is because multiplication or division by the same number on both sides of an equation does not change its equality.
For example, if we need to divide 0.02099 by 0.12, we could multiply both the dividend and the divisor by a power of 10 that makes the divisor a whole number, like 100. In this case, the division becomes 2.099 divided by 12, which simplifies the arithmetic.
Another important point is that in multiplication and division, the result should not have more significant figures than the least number of significant figures in any of the factors involved. This rule ensures precision in the calculation is maintained according to the reliability of the original data.