Then write the sum of the number of grains of rice, total , on all of those 8 squares. So they use a system called Scientific Notation. Write 5,280 in scientific notation. There are times when we need to use very small numbers. When a chemist measures the size of a molecule, when a statistician calculates the probability of a very unlikely event, they need to use numbers that are equally as small as our billions and trillions are big.
Astronomers deal with some of the largest numbers.
When you are measuring the distance from Earth to even the nearest star, mere millions will not do. Show your work. There are many, many other applications of numbers both small and large, from the odds in gambling to the calculations involved in industrial design of products from our televisions to our cars. Numbers, large ones and small ones, have applications in many different areas. An important part of the history of mathematics is the history of numbers.