Order of magnitude estimations are quick, back of the envelope estimations up to an order of 10. These can help check answers by making sure your solution is on the same order of magnitude as the variable values.
Learning Objectives
Summary: Learning Objectives
Students will be able to…
- Differentiate between order of magnitude and "times as much".
- Perform back of the envelope estimations.
BoxSand's Resources
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Orders of Magnitude
Orders of Magnitude basically corresponds to counting zeros. More concretely, the powers of 10. For example, how many orders of magnitude larger is 1000 than 1? Well, count the zeros (or powers of 10). 1000 has 3 more zeros, so it is 3 orders of magnitude larger.
Video
Orders of Magnitude (3 min)
Web Resources
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Practice
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Problem Solving Help
Tips and Tricks
Use scientific notation to help you make order of magnitude estimations! If two numbers written in scientific notation are raised to the same power of 10, they are the same order of magnitude.