Exponents: Is the Answer Positive or Negative?
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Lesson Summary:
This lesson on exponents focuses on the often-confusing issue of the sign associated with the exponent. The video explains that expressions containing negative numbers and exponents are not always straightforward and may require careful attention. By providing examples and showing how to differentiate between what belongs to the exponent and what does not, the video helps learners understand how to simplify these types of expressions correctly. The lesson also provides a useful tip for staying on track with these problems, namely to put a big warning in your notebook to help keep everything straight.
Lesson Description:
Strategies for simplifying exponents in expressions containing negative numbers.
Questions answered by this video:
- How do you simplify exponents?
- If a negative number is squared, is the answer positive or negative?
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Staff Review
This video explains why a negative number squared should equal a positive, and why this is so often mixed up because of missing parentheses. If you are one of those people who gets -4 when you square -2, this video is for you!
