Question

In 1995 the USPS approximated that they handled 1.8 x 10^11 pieces of mail. In 2010 the USPS reported that they handled 1.7x10^11 pieces. How many more pieces of mail were handled in 1995 than 2010

Answer 1

`1 * 10^(10)` more pieces of mail were handled in 1995 than in 2010.

Explanation:

We are given that in 1995, the USPS approximated that they handled
`1.8 * 10^(11)` pieces of mail and in 2010, the USPS reported that they handled
`1.7 * 10^(11)` pieces.

To find how many more pieces of mail were handled in 1995 than in 2010, we do subtraction of the pieces of mail that were handled in both the years.

Pieces of mail handled in 1995 =
`1.8 * 10^(11)`

Pieces of mail handled in 2010 =
`1.7 * 10^(11)`

As it is clear that more pieces of mail were handled in 1995.

So, Pieces of mail handled in 1995 - Pieces of mail handled in 2010 =
`(1.8 * 10^(11)) -(1.7 * 10^(11))`

=
`10^(11) * (1.8 -1.7)`

=
`10^(11) * 0.1` =
`1 * 10^(10)`

Hence,
`1 * 10^(10)` more pieces of mail were handled in 1995 than in 2010.