To express the number 18,000 in scientific notation, follow these steps:
1. Identify the significant digits: The significant digits in 18,000 are 1 and 8 (ignoring the trailing zeros).
2. Position the decimal point: Place the decimal point right after the first significant digit. For 18,000, this becomes 1.8.
3. Determine the exponent:
- Count the number of places the decimal point has moved from its original position at the end of the number. In this case, it moves 4 places to the left.
- Each place moved to the left corresponds to an increase in the exponent by 1. So, moving 4 places results in an exponent of 4.
4. Write the number in scientific notation: Combine the significant digits with the exponent expressed as a power of 10. Thus, 18,000 becomes [tex]\( 1.8 \times 10^4 \)[/tex].
Based on these steps, the correct answer is:
[tex]\[ 1.8 \times 10^4 \][/tex]
