The national debt of a certain country is $1.42 x 10^12. The population of that country is about 3.75 × 10^7people. If the national debt were evenly divided among every person in the country, how much debt would be assigned to each individual?

To find how much national debt would be assigned to each individual, we divide the total national debt by the population:

\[
\frac{{1.42 \times 10^{12}}}{{3.75 \times 10^7}}
\]

### Step 1: Divide the coefficients
\[
\frac{1.42}{3.75} \approx 0.3787
\]

### Step 2: Subtract the exponents
Since the exponents are in powers of 10, subtract the exponent in the denominator from the exponent in the numerator:
\[
10^{12} \div 10^7 = 10^{12-7} = 10^5
\]

### Step 3: Multiply the result from Step 1 with the result from Step 2
\[
0.3787 \times 10^5 = 3.787 \times 10^4
\]

So, the amount of debt assigned to each individual is approximately **$37,870**.

Would you like more details or have any questions?

Here are 5 related questions to consider:
1. How would the debt per person change if the population were doubled?
2. If the national debt increased by 10%, what would the new debt per person be?
3. How does dividing numbers in scientific notation simplify such calculations?
4. How would this calculation change if we expressed the debt per person in millions of dollars?
5. What is the difference between dividing numbers in scientific notation and regular notation?

**Tip:** Always align powers of 10 in scientific notation before performing arithmetic operations like multiplication or division!

The national debt of a certain country is $1.42 x 10^12. The population of that country is about 3.75 × 10^7 people. If the national debt were evenly divided among every person in the country, how much debt would be assigned to each individual?

Find out how to calculate the national debt per person when the total debt is $1.42 x 10^12 and the population is 3.75 x 10^7. This problem involves division using scientific notation and exponent rules, suitable for students in Grades 8-10.

Math Problem Statement

Solution

Ask a new question for Free

By Image

Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Formulas

Theorems

Suitable Grade Level

Related Recommendation