Standard Form Summary

GCSE Maths

Standard form is a way of writing very large, or small, numbers without the bother of writing loads of digits
e.g. 15,700,000,000 can be written 1·57 × 1010

Numbers less than 1 have a negative power, 10 or more a positive power.

Numbers in standard form are written: A × 10B where A is a number more than 1 but less than 10 (decimals are allowed) and B is a negative or positive whole number.

The power of ten indicates whether the number is really bigger or smaller, and how many times the decimal point needs to be moved. Negative means move left, positive: right.

Numbers can be easily multiplied or divided in standard form.
Multiplication: multiply the numbers, add the powers.
Division: divide the numbers, subtract the powers.


GCSE Maths Related topic: accuracyGCSE Maths Maths Menu