1) Scientific notation is used to express very large or small numbers in a more compact form. It expresses numbers as the product of a number between 1 and 10 and a power of 10.
2) To convert a number to scientific notation, the decimal is moved to place the number between 1 and 10, and the power of 10 is determined by the number of places moved. Positive exponents indicate moving left, negative right.
3) When adding or subtracting numbers in scientific notation, they must first be converted to the same power of 10 before performing the operation. Multiplication and division directly apply the rules of adding or subtracting exponents.