Standard to Scientific Notation (Jump to: Lecture | Video )

Let's convert the number "728000000." from standard notation to scientific notation.

First, move the decimal point to the right of the first nonzero digit.

7.28000000

Next, count how many places you moved the decimal point. This is your exponent. If you moved it to the left, your exponent is positive. If you moved it to the right, your exponent is negative. We moved the decimal point 8 places to the right, so our final number in scientific notation is:

Figure 1.