According to a survey, \( 56,271,685 \) people can speak a language other than their native language. Round this number to the nearest, a. hundred, b. thousand, c. ten thousand, d. hundred thousand, e. million, f. ten million. a. The number \( 56,271,685 \) rounded to the nearest hundred is .

a. The number \( 56,271,685 \) rounded to the nearest hundred is **56,271,700**. **Explanation:** To round \( 56,271,685 \) to the nearest hundred: 1. **Identify the hundreds and tens digits:** - Hundreds digit: 6 (from "685") - Tens digit: 8 2. **Determine whether to round up or down:** - Since the tens digit is 8 (which is greater than or equal to 5), we round up. 3. **Perform the rounding:** - Increase the hundreds digit by 1: 6 becomes 7. - Replace the tens and units digits with zeros. So, \( 56,271,685 \) rounded to the nearest hundred is **56,271,700**.