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Significant DigitsConceptThe practice of showing the precision of a measured value by writing down all measured digits but no more than the measured digits is closely related to the concept of significant digits (which are also called significant figures). Each actually measured digit is called a significant digit. Keep in mind that sometimes one or more zeros are included in a measurement as placeholders even though they are not actually measured. Those zeros are not significant digits. Placeholding zeros show how big (or small) a number is, but not how precise it is. When writing down a measurement, the basic rule for significant digits is to write down every digit that is measured, including measured zeros, but not placeholding zeros.
E-mail instructor: Eden Francis Clackamas Community College
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