Order-of-magnitude analysis

Order-of-magnitude analysis is like playing a guessing game to figure out if something is big or small. Let's say you want to know how many stickers are in a jar. You could count every single sticker to get the exact number, but that can take a long time. Instead, you can make a guess based on what you already know.

For example, you might know that a sheet of stickers usually has 20 stickers, and the jar looks like it has about 10 sheets in it. So you guess that there are around 200 stickers in the jar. This guess doesn't have to be exact, but it should be close enough to give you an idea of how many stickers you have.

This is like order-of-magnitude analysis because you're making estimates based on what you already know. When you use order-of-magnitude analysis, you're not trying to get an exact answer. Instead, you're trying to get an idea of how big or small something is so you can make better decisions. It's a really useful tool to have when you're trying to solve problems and make decisions.