Dimensional Analysis and Unit Conversions

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Objective

I can apply dimensional analysis to solve problems involving unit conversions.

Part 1 of 4

Warm-up video

Professor Dave Explains · 5:13Vetted channel

We don't generate video — this one is by Professor Dave Explains on YouTube. The practice questions and exit ticket below were drafted by AI for this objective, and every question is editable in the teacher guide.

Part 2 of 4

Key concepts

3 concepts

  1. 1

    Scientific notation is a way to abbreviate very large and very small numbers, consisting of a single digit, a decimal, and then some other numbers, multiplied by 10 raised to an exponent.

  2. 2

    In scientific notation, a positive exponent means moving the decimal to the right to make a larger number, while a negative exponent means moving the decimal to the left to make a smaller number.

  3. 3

    To convert between units using dimensional analysis, you multiply the given value by a fraction that is equal to one, where the units you want to cancel are placed in the denominator.

Part 3 of 4

Practice

12 questions

1

Convert the number 3.14 x 10^5 to standard notation.

2

Express 0.0000072 grams in scientific notation.

Part 4 of 4

Exit ticket

Quick comprehension check

Using dimensional analysis, convert 2.5 weeks into hours. Show all your conversion factors and steps.

Sample answer included in the free materials

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Teacher guide, student handout, and slides — free, in Google Docs format

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