Rules for significant figures: 1. Non-zero digits are always significant. 2. Any zeros between two significant digits are significant. 3. Leading zeros (zeros to the left of the first non-zero digit) are not significant. 4. Trailing zeros (zeros to the right of the last non-zero digit) are significant if the number contains a decimal point. In scientific notation, all digits in the mantissa (the part before the exponent) are considered significant.