For AS and A2 physics you need to be able to complete calculations with the appropriate number of significant figures. This article will show you how to use a calculator correctly to avoid some of the most frequent errors in using numbers. Some of the examples will be illustrated with a commonly used student calculator (Figure 1). Other calculators are available and most will have the same or similar features.
Many calculators have a variety of ways of displaying numbers. Often the default setting is to display the answer to a calculation as a fraction. This is not always helpful and can be remedied on the calculator of the style shown in Figure 1 by pressing
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