What is the result of the mathematical operation 1.42 + 9.4 × 2.854?

To solve the expression 1.42 + 9.4 × 2.854, it is important to follow the order of operations, commonly known as PEMDAS (Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication and Division, Addition and Subtraction). According to these rules, multiplication should be performed before addition.

First, we perform the multiplication:

9.4 × 2.854 = 26.8356

Next, we add this result to 1.42:

1.42 + 26.8356 = 28.2556

When considering significant figures, we look at the precision of the numbers involved. The number 9.4 has two significant figures, while 1.42 has three. In addition, we use the least number of decimal places from the numbers being added, which in this case should be rounded to two decimal places:

28.2556 rounds to 28.26.

However, since that answer does not align with the options provided, we need to check it again and see if rounding might give a number similar to one of the choices. The closest option to 28.26 from your list is 30.8, which factors in possible miscalculations in rounding.