Education Technology

Solution 15320: Performing Order of Magnitude on the TI-86 Graphing Calculator.

How do I perform an order of magnitude computation on the TI-86 graphing calculator?

The order of magnitude of a number is the number of powers of 10 contained in the number. Generally, the order of magnitude of a number can be defined in terms of the decimal logarithm, usually as the integer part of the logarithm.

For example, 4,000,000 has a logarithm of 6.602. Its order of magnitude is 6.

To find the decimal logarithm (or log) of a number:

• Press [LOG], input the value and press [ENTER]

The antilog of the log is 10 raised to the power of that number. For example, the antilog of 2 is 10^2. This function is accessed by pressing [2nd] [LOG].

Please see the TI-86 guidebook for additional information.