To determine the total mass of the three granite samples and report it with the appropriate number of significant figures, follow these steps:
1. Identify the masses of the granite samples:
- The first sample has a mass of 14.79 grams.
- The second sample has a mass of 86.2 grams.
- The third sample has a mass of 97.874 grams.
2. Calculate the total mass:
Add all the masses together.
[tex]\[
14.79\, \text{g} + 86.2\, \text{g} + 97.874\, \text{g} = 198.864\, \text{g}
\][/tex]
3. Determine the significant figures:
When adding or subtracting numbers, the result should be reported to the same number of decimal places as the measurement with the fewest decimal places.
- 14.79 has 2 decimal places.
- 86.2 has 1 decimal place.
- 97.874 has 3 decimal places.
The measurement with the fewest decimal places is 86.2, which has 1 decimal place.
4. Round the total mass to 1 decimal place:
The calculated total mass is 198.864 grams. Rounded to 1 decimal place, it becomes 198.9 grams.
Therefore, the total mass of the three granite samples, reported to the appropriate number of significant figures, is:
[tex]\[
198.9\, \text{g}
\][/tex]
