Question

An object's density equals its mass divided by its volume. If a certain object has a mass of 125 g and a volume of 25 mL, what is its density expressed to the correct number of significant figures?

Options:
A. 5.00 g/mL
B. 5 g/mL
C. 5.000 g/mL
D. 5.0 g/mL

Answer 1

The density of the object is calculated using the formula density = mass/volume. With the given mass of 125 g and volume of 25 mL, the density is 5 g/mL. The correct answer, expressed with two significant figures, is 5.0 g/mL, which corresponds to option D.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the density of an object, we use the formula density = mass / volume. In this case, we have a mass of 125 g and a volume of 25 mL. When we perform the division, we get:

density = 125 g / 25 mL = 5 g/mL.

Now, we must consider the number of significant figures to express our answer. The mass measurement has four significant figures (125 g), and the volume has only two significant figures (25 mL). Since the rule for multiplication and division is to round the answer to the least number of significant figures present in any of the measurements, our density calculation should be reported with two significant figures. Therefore, the correct answer, expressed with the appropriate number of significant figures, is 5.0 g/mL, represented as option D.