Significant+Digits+-+Precision

The use of significant digits ensures that a result is not more precise then the numbers used to calculate it. For example, should you divide 29.5 cm by 67 cm you get an answer of 0.4402985075 cm. Looking at this final result you would think that your answer is very precise but in reality you're answer is only as precise as the numberws you use to obtain it. In this case the correct answer would be 0.44 cm. The rules for significant figures are as follows: 1. Numbers between 1 and 9 are significant- all non-zero digits. (example: 327 has three significant digits) 2. Zeros following numbers between 1 to 9 are not significant unless they are followed by a decimal point. (example: 327 000 has three significant digits but 327 000. has six significant digits) 3. Zeros are significant if they are between numbers 1 to 9, called captive zeros (example: 30 027 has five significant digits) 4. Leading zeros are never significant. (example: 0.0000007 only has one significant digit) 5. Counted numbers and constants have an infinite number of significant digits. (for example, if you were to count 3 chickens in a barn, it would unlimited sig figs)