Answer to Question #338185 in Cell Biology for Ell

Question

Demonstrate an understanding of the scale and size of cells and be able to make order of magnitude calculations, inc standard form

Answer 1

Majority of animal and plant cells are 0.01 – 0.10 mm in size. The smallest thing seen with the naked eye is about 0.05 mm. For all cells we need a microscope to see them in any detail.

Order of magnitude is usually written as 10 to the nth power. The n represents the order of magnitude. If you raise a number by one order of magnitude, you are basically multiplying that number by 10. 

Orders of magnitude are used to make approximate comparisons of size or quantity. If two numbers have the same order of magnitude, they are about the same size. If two numbers differ by one order of magnitude, one is about ten times larger than the other.