Significant Figures

Significant figures cause students a lot of confusion that is really not necessary once you understand what it is all about. Calculations in chemistry require numbers to be very accurate. There is no room for numbers that are guesses or just estimates. Each number that is used must be an accurate, dependable number. So rules have been established to guarantee that the numbers used are just that - dependable and reliable. You may have been introduced to these rules and have noticed that several of the rules are concerned with zeroes.