Final answer:
To determine which number is larger, compare the exponents in scientific notation. The number with the larger exponent is always larger. To find out how many times larger one number is than the other, divide the larger number by the smaller number.
Step-by-step explanation:
In order to determine which of the two numbers is larger, we compare the exponents of the numbers in scientific notation. The number with the larger exponent is always larger. We can also calculate how many times larger one number is than the other by dividing the larger number by the smaller number.
a. 12⋅109 is larger than 4⋅109 because 9 is larger than 9. It is 3 times larger because 12⋅109 divided by 4⋅109 is 3.
b. 1.5⋅1012 is smaller than 3⋅1012 because 12 is smaller than 12. It is 2 times smaller because 1.5⋅1012 divided by 3⋅1012 is 0.5.
c. 20⋅104 is smaller than 6⋅105 because 4 is smaller than 5. It is 0.3333 times smaller because 20⋅104 divided by 6⋅105 is approximately 0.3333.