Rounding answers

[jordanginyard_]

When we have an answer to any problem and we have to round. What should we round up to? Should I have round up to the tenths or hundredths?

[Hannah Alltucker 3L]

You should round based on your smallest sig figs from the information that the problem itself gives you. They represent the accuracy of your measurements, so you can only be as accurate as what is already given.

[OwenSumter_2F]

Also, as an additional note, try not to round your numbers until the final answer, otherwise you could be off by a few decimal points.

[Mikayla Kwok 3K]

Just an additional note about rounding that was new to me upon entering this class: when you round based on the smallest number of sig figs and the digit immediately after your last is 5, you do not always round up. You round to the nearest even number. For instance, if you get an exact answer of 2.45 g, and you need to round off to 2 sig figs, your final answer would be 2.4, not 2.5, because 4 is the closest even number.

[Tanya Nguyen 1B]

When calculating I try to use as many decimal places as I can (usually four to five decimal places) to get the most accurate answer. For the answer, I would round it to however many sig figs was given in the question.

[Queena Chu 3E]

Typically, I avoid rounding until the end of the problem so I can get as precise of an answer as possible. I usually leave 6 decimal points and then when I finish all my calculations, I round based on the number of sig figs given in the problem.

[Kathy_Li_1H]

Hi! I would suggest NOT rounding any calculated value until you find the answer, preventing calculation errors, and when you get your answer, round your answer to the smallest sig fig. Hope this helps!

[James Patanian 2C]

Hi, do we need to know how to round sig. figs when dealing with logarithms for the midterm? Will we be dealing with logarithms much at all in this level of chemistry?