Funny, 1.18k is more characters than 1180 and usually I think of using the k form for less approximate values, e.g. 1k
When people say in English one hundred thousand one thousand and ten, you will need to visualize the digits
101,010
But in Chinese you say 10 * 10^4, 1 * 10^3, 0, 1 * 10
the zero helps you write a zero after the second one without making a mistake
“1180” without the decimal implies only 3 significant digits.
For me ≈1180 would mean that it's not exactly 1180.
But a better title would be something like “Over a thousand plant root system drawings”.
1180 can be 4 significant digits if the count is precise
A kagi or Google search for 1.18k in quotes returns this very HN thread and mostly a bunch of resistors, very few organic uses (some youtube videos about subscriber counts is all I see).