GCSE · Standard form

Standard form in contextExam-style questions

How standard-form arithmetic solves real scale problems — distances, masses, populations — and why unit conversion has to happen before the powers of ten can do their work.

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19 questions · GCSE (Higher) level · mark scheme and worked solution on each · no sign-up to try

DifficultyAllLevel 1Level 2Level 3Level 4Level 5
  1. 1
    A grain of sand has a mass of 3.5×10−43.5 \times 10^{-4} grams. Work out the total mass of 2×1062 \times 10^6 grains of sand. Give your answer in kilograms, in standard form.
    Level 5 · 3 marksTry it
  2. 2
    A red blood cell has a diameter of 7×10−67 \times 10^{-6} m. A line of red blood cells, placed edge to edge, is 1.4 km long.

    Work out the number of cells in the line. Give your answer in standard form.
    Level 5 · 3 marksTry it
  3. 3
    A country's national debt is £2.4×10122.4 \times 10^{12}.

    The country's population is 6×1076 \times 10^7 people.

    Work out the debt per person. Give your answer in standard form.
    Level 5 · 3 marksTry it
  4. 4
    A sheet of paper is 8×10−58 \times 10^{-5} m thick.

    How many sheets make a pile exactly 22 m tall? Give your answer in standard form.
    Level 5 · 3 marksTry it