Final answer:
To express the equation in scientific notation, we combine all terms into the same power of ten. After converting, we add up and find that the answer closest to our calculation is (3.7 x 10^4).
Step-by-step explanation:
To express (2.4 x 10^2 + 3.4 x 10^4 + 1.5 x 10^3) in scientific notation, we should combine the terms while ensuring that each term is in the same power of ten before we add them. Given the terms, we can see that 3.4 x 10^4 has the highest exponent, so we want to express the other terms with a power of ten to the fourth power.
Firstly, we rewrite 2.4 x 10^2 and 1.5 x 10^3 so they are in terms of 10^4:
- 2.4 x 10^2 = 0.024 x 10^4
- 1.5 x 10^3 = 0.15 x 10^4
Adding these together with 3.4 x 10^4, we get:
0.024 x 10^4 + 3.4 x 10^4 + 0.15 x 10^4 = (3.574 x 10^4)
The closest answer to our calculation in terms of the options provided is (3.7 x 10^4).