_______________________________________________________________________________________
FRAME 3-1.
DEFINITION. A decimal is a number that represents a fraction whose
denominator is a power of ten. That is, the denominator is 10 or 100 or
1000 or 10,000, etc.
Being a "power of ten" simply means that the denominator is 10
multiplied by itself a certain number of times. The "power" shows how
many times 10 is multiplied by itself to obtain the number. The number
1000, for example, is 10 x 10 x 10. This shows that 1000 is 10
multiplied by itself three times. 1000 is 10 to the third power (usually
written as 103).
a. What is the denominator of a fraction if the denominator is equal to 10
to the sixth power?
b. What is the denominator of a fraction if the denominator is equal to 10
to the first power?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
FRAME 3-2.
Solution to
Frame 3-1.
place value. A decimal point (period or dot) is used to separate the
whole number from the decimal numerals (fraction). Like the place
n
values shown in Frame 1-2, each place value has a name. Like whole
1,000,000
numbers, the value decreases by one-tenth (1/10) each time you move to
the right. (Likewise, the place value increases by 10 if you go to the left.)
n
The names of some of the place values are shown below.
10
Note: If the entire number has a value that is less than one (there are no
(the "n" represents the
whole numbers to the left of the decimal), a zero is usually placed in the
numerator.)
ones place to make reading easier (it emphasizes the decimal point).
NOTE: Commas are not used to the right of the decimal.
What would you call the eighth and ninth places to the right of the
decimal?
____________________________________________________________________________________
MD0900
3-2
Previous Page
