A megabyte corresponds to how many bytes?

A megabyte corresponds to 2^20 bytes. This unit of measurement is rooted in computer science and digital data storage, where data is often quantified in powers of two due to binary encoding. In this context, a megabyte represents a significant amount of data, equating to 1,048,576 bytes.

Understanding that 2^20 equals 1,048,576 helps clarify the specific size of a megabyte and its relevance. This measurement is commonly used to describe file sizes, memory storage capacities, and data transmission rates in many technological applications.

In contrast, the other options reflect different data sizes: 2^10 would only be 1,024 bytes (a kilobyte), 2^15 would be 32,768 bytes (a rather small quantity), and 2^30 represents a gigabyte, which is considerably larger than a megabyte. This distinction underscores the importance of understanding these powers of two in the context of digital storage and data processing.