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CAHSEE Math 4.1 Number Sense 218 Views


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Description:

Number Sense: Drill Set 4, Problem 1. Simplify the expression.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:03

And here's your shmoop du jour...

00:05

Simplify the expression (8) to the -3 times (16) squared.

00:11

And here are the potential answers...

00:18

How in the world do we take a negative exponent?

00:21

The process isn't really that intuitive.

00:23

It's like GIVING someone a bunch of taxes. Just doesn't make natural sense.

00:28

Let's start with the second part of this,

00:30

...square 16... so 16 times 16 which is 256. Done.

00:35

Now we have to figure out how we can negatively cube 8.

00:39

One thing that'll help is to realize that anything to a negative exponent can be rewritten

00:43

as 1 OVER that number...

00:45

...that is, 8 to the negative 3rd power is the same as 1 over just a normal positive 8... cubed.

00:52

So the first part is just 1 over 512.

00:58

Now we have 1 over 512 times 256... which is 256 over 512... or 1 over 2 or just one half.

01:09

And our answer is B.

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