For example, 10 to the power -2 is defined as being the same as 1 divide by (10 to the power 2).Defining it this way ensures that many common rules for exponents continue being valid for all numbers, positive or negative - for example, (x to the power a) times (x to the power b) = x to the power (a + b).
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It is the same as the reciprocal of the base raised to the corresponding positive exponent.
b^-x = 1/(b^x) = (1/b)^x
the exponent is a negative
No, there is a big difference between 2^(-4) and (-2)^4 The first is 1/16 and the second is 16. A negative exponent is the reciprocal of a positive exponent. a^b is going to be 1/ (a^(-b)), Similarly, (a^b)*(a^(-b))=1 for two reasons. First multiplying reciprocals cancels them out. Second, when you multiply the same base you add the exponents, so (a^b)*(a^(-b)) = a^0 which equals 1◄
It means that there is a power, some number is the base, and 2 is the exponent.
I assume you mean "negative integer exponents".It means that: * It is an exponent * It is an integer (whole number) * It is negative (less than zero, i.e., with a minus sign) A negative exponent is defined as the reciprocal of the positive exponent. For example, 10 to the power -5 is the same as 1 / (10 to the power 5).
5E-5 is scientific notation representing the number 5 multiplied by 10 raised to the power of -5. This can be expanded to 0.00005 in standard decimal notation. The "E" in 5E-5 stands for exponent, indicating the number of decimal places the decimal point should be moved to the left (negative exponent) or right (positive exponent).