Answer to Question #70590 in General Chemistry for patrick soriano

Question

Compute the area given the following measurements: 2.0546 cm and 4.3 cm. Express the answer in significant figures.

Answer 1

Formula for the area of a rectangle is the most basic area formula [1]. Given a rectangle with length l and width w, the formula for the area is: A=l∙w=2.0546 ∙ 4.3 = 8.83478 cm2=0,000883478 m2=8,8∙10-4 m2 (because SI unit of area is the square metre). In accordance with the rules of rounding for case of multiplication or division [2], result can have no more significant figures than the least accurate number (w=4.3, one significant figure).
Answer: Area is 8.8 cm2 (8,8∙10-4 m2).
Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Area
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Significant_figures