Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 1

Part 1 - The De nition

Exponential notation expresses repeated multiplication.

.
De nition: We de ne 27 to denote the factor 2 multiplied by itself repeatedly 7 times, such as

2 2 2 2} = 27
|2 2 2 {z
7 factors

The new operation de ned is called exponentiation. The factor (in this case 2) is called the base. The
number written above the base, in smaller font (in this case, 7) is called the exponent.

Since the de nition does not elegantly t the case when the exponent is one, we also de ne 51 to be 5. One factor, so technically,
no multiplication.

When we enlarge our mathematical notation by the inclusion of exponential expressions, a few things might become problematic.
For example, is there a difference between 32 and ( 3)2 ?

Recall that a negative sign in front of anything can be interpreted as 'the opposite of ', which is the same as mutliplication by 1.
We can interpret 3 as 1 3; and so we can re-interpret the original question from comparing 32 and ( 3)2 to a question
comparing 1 32 and ( 1 3)2 . The rest is really just an order of operations problem.

Recall that in our order of operations agreement, , exponentiation superseeds multiplication. So, when presented by

multiplication and exponentiation, we rst execute the exponentiation and then the multiplication. And so, if there is no
parentheses, we have

1 32 perform exponentiation
1 9 perform multiplication
9

And if we have a parentheses, that serves to overwrite the usual order of operations:

( 1 3)2 whatever is in the parentheses rst

2
( 3) square the number 3
9

The difference between 32 and ( 3)2 is truly an order of operations thing: we are talking about taking the opposite and
squaring, but in different orders.

32 is square 3 and then take the result's opposite —- or the opposite of the square of 3

( 3)2 is take the opposite of 3 and then square —— or the square of the opposite of 3

In algebra, it is important to correctly read notation. Confusing 32 and ( 3)2 is an error that commonly occurs and messes
up computations.

c Hidegkuti, Emmett, Powell, 2008 Last revised: August 26, 2018

Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 2

.
Caution! In the expression ( 3)2 , the base of the exponentiation is 3. In the expression 32 , the base
of the exponentiation is 3.

Example 1. Simplify each of the given expressions.

a) 24 b) ( 2)4 c) 13 d) ( 1)3 e) ( 2)2 f) 22
Solution: a) The base of the exponentiation is 2.

24 = 1 24 = 1 (2 2 2 2) = 1 16 = 16

24 can be read as the opposite of 24 .

b) The base of the exponentiation is 2.

( 2)4 = ( 1 2)4 = ( 1 2) ( 1 2) ( 1 2) ( 1 2) = ( 2) ( 2) ( 2) ( 2) = 16

( 2)4 can be read as the fourth power of 2.

c) The base of the exponentiation is 1.

13 = 1 13 = 1 1 1 1= 1

d) The base of the exponentiation is 1.

( 1)3 = ( 1) ( 1) ( 1) = 1

e) The base of the exponentiation is 2.

( 2)2 = (( 2) ( 2)) = (4) = 4

f) Careful! The base of the exponentiation is 2. This is NOT squaring 2. This is squaring 2 and then taking the
opposite of the result twice.
22 = ( 1 2 2) = ( 4) = 4

Discussion: Explain why in the expression ( 5)2 , the two negatives do not cancel out to a
positive.

Part 2 - Rules of Exponents

When mathematicians agreed to de ne 35 as 3 3 3 3 3, that was a free choice. They could have gone with other de nitions.
Once this de nition exists, however, certain properties are automatically true, and we have no other option but to recognize them
as true. The following statements are straightforward consequences of the de nition - and the mathematics we already have.

Consider the expression 23 24 . If we re-write the expression using the de nition of exponents, we quickly get that
def mult is def
23 24 = (2 2 2) (2 2 2 2) = 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 = 27
associative

The computation above illustrates why the following theorem is true.

c Hidegkuti, Emmett, Powell, 2008 Last revised: August 26, 2018

Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 3

.
Theorem 1. If a is any number and m and n are any two positive integers, then

an am = an+m

We can see that this rule follows from the de nition of exponents and from the fact that multiplication is associative.
25
Consider now the expression . If we re-write the expression using the de nition of exponents, we quickly get that
23

25 def 2 2 2 2 2 cancellation 2/ 2/ 2/ 2 2 def 22

= = = = 22
23 2 2 2 2/ 2/ 2/ 1

.
Theorem 2. If a is any number and m and n are any two positive integers, then

an
= an m
am

As our computation shows, this property is a consequence of the de nition of exponentials and our rules of cancellation.
5
Consider now 23 . If we re-write the expression using the de nition of exponents, we quickly get that

5 def def
23 = 23 23 23 23 23 = (2 2 2) (2 2 2) (2 2 2) (2 2 2) (2 2 2)
mult is def
= 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 = 215
associative

Clearly, we have ve groups of three two-factors.

.
Theorem 3. If a is any number and m and n are any two positive integers, then

(an )m = anm

As our computation shows, this property is a consequence of the de nition of exponentials and the fact that multiplication is
associative.

Consider now (2 3)4 . If we re-write the expression using the de nition of exponents, we quickly get that

def mult is
(2 3)4 = (2 3) (2 3) (2 3) (2 3) = 2 3 2 3 2 3 2 3
associative
mult is mult is def
= 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 = (2 2 2 2) (3 3 3 3) = 24 34
commutative associative

.
Theorem 4. If a and b are any numbers and n is any positive integer, then

(ab)n = an bn

As our computation shows, this property is a consequence of the de nition of exponentials and the fact that multiplication is
commutative and associative.

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 4

Caution! Exponentiation denotes repeated multiplication, so it is a fundamentally multiplicative concept. Exponents will
exhibit nice behvior with respect to multiplication and division, but NOT with respect to addition and subtraction. Similar-looking
statements fail to be true if addition or subtraction is involved. For example, (2 5)2 = 22 52 ; but (2 + 5)2 6= 22 + 52 .

Caution! Another common mistake is to confuse (ab)n with abn . (It is an order of operations thing.) The base of exponentiation
is ab in (ab)n but only b in abn .

abn = a |b b{z::: }b and (ab)n = (ab) (ab) ::: (ab)

| {z }
n times n times

5
3
Consider now the expression . If we re-write the expression using the de nition of exponents, we quickly get that
4
5
3 def 3 3 3 3 3 rules of multipying 3 3 3 3 3 def 35
= = = 5
4 4 4 4 4 4 fractions 4 4 4 4 4 4

.
Theorem 5. If a and b are any numbers and n is any positive integer, then

a n an
=
b bn

As our computation shows, this property is a consequence of the de nition of exponentials and the rule of how we multiply
fractions.

Caution! Exponentiation denotes repeated multiplication, so it is a fundamentally multiplicative concept. Exponents will
exhibit nice behavior with respect to multiplication and division, but NOT with respect to addition and subtraction. Similar-looking
2 2 22
statements fail to be true if addition or subtraction is involved. For example, = 2 , but (5 2)2 6= 52 22 .
5 5
To summarize what just happened: once we de ned exponentiation as repeated multiplication, certain properties immediately
followed from the de nition. These properties are as follows.
.
Theorem: If a; b are any numbers and m, n are any positive integers, then

1. an am = an+m 4. (ab)n = an bn

an a n an
2. = an m
5. =
am b bn

3. (an )m = anm

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 5

Example 2. Simplify each of the following expressions.

3 3 (2x)5 3 2
a) x5 x3 b) x5 c) 2x5 d) e) x2 f) x3
2x3
Solution: a) In case of x5 x3 , we can apply the de nition or our rst rule. Either way, we will end up adding the exponents.
x5 x3 = x8
3
b) In case of x5 , we have repeated exponentiation. Applying the de nition, we see three groups of factors, each
group with ve factors in it. So, we multiply the exponents.
3
x5 = x15
3
c) In case of 2x5 , we will have to apply several rules. First, when a product is exponentiated, we exponentiate
each factor, i.e. (ab)n = an bn .
3 3
2x5 = 23 x5 = 8 x15 = 8x15

(2x)5
d) In the expression , the number 2 is part of the base in the exponentiation in the numerator, but not in
2x3
the exponentiation in the denominator. Once we got rid of the parentheses in the numerator, we subtract the
exponents corresponding to cancellation.

(2x)5 25 x5 32x5
= = = 16x5 3 = 16x2 .
2x3 2x3 2x3
3
e) In the expression x2 , the leading negative sign brings some algebraic complications. One way to handle
this, either mentally or also in writing, to interpret x2 as the opposite of x2 ; or 1 x2 . Notice that the 1 is
not getting raised to second power, only to the third power.
3 3 3
x2 = 1 x2 = ( 1)3 x2 = 1 x6 = x6 .

f) This expression is very similar to the previous one. Here the negative sign gets squared only but not cubed.
2 2 2
x3 = 1 x3 = ( 1)2 x3 = 1 x6 = x6 .
3
( 2a)4 ab4 ab2
Example 3. Simplify the expression . Assume that a and b represent non-zero numbers.
( 2ab2 )3 ba2

Solution: There are several ways to solve this problem. We will take our time and apply one rule at the time. We will start
with the rule (ab)n = an bn . Also, standalone negative signs will be replaced with a 1 multiplyer.
3 3 3
( 2a)4 ab4 ab2 ( 2a)4 1ab4 ab2 ( 2)4 a4 ( 1)3 a3 b4 ab2
= =
( 2ab2 )3 ba2 ( 2ab2 )3 ba2 ( 2)3 a3 (b2 )3 ba2
Next, we perform the exponentiation on the numbers and bring them forward, re-ordered the variables alphabetically,
and simplify expressions contining repeated exponentiation using the rule (an )m = anm .
3
( 2)4 a4 ( 1)3 a3 b4 ab2 16a4 ( 1) a3 b12 ab2 16a4 a3 ab12 b2
= =
( 2)3 a3 (b2 )3 ba2 8a3 b6 ba2 8a3 a2 b6 b

Next, we apply our rst rule, an am = an+m in both numerator and denominator.
16a4 a3 ab12 b2 16a4+3+1 b12+2 16a8 b14
= =
8a3 a2 b6 b 8a3+2 b6+1 8a5 b7

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 6

At this point, both numerator and denominator are completely simpli ed. We can tell because both expressions
have no repetition of sign, number, or any of the variables. What is left for us to do, is to consolidate numerator and
denominator. We will simplify (or perform the division) between 16 and 8, and perform cancellation between
an
the variables, using the rule m = an m .
a
16a8 b14 2a8 5 b14 7
= = 2a3 b7
8a5 b7 1

So the simpli ed expression is 2a3 b7 .

Discussion: Why was it necessary in the previous example to assume that a and b represent
non-negative numbers?
Explain why this step is incorrect: 2 5x = 10x .

Example 4. Consider the expression 3x 3x .

a) Simplify the expression using our rst rule, an am = an+m only.
b) Simplify the expression using our fourth rule, (ab)n = an bn only.
c) Is there a rule of exponentiation that can be used to verify that the results from part a) and part b) are the same?

Solution: a) The base is the same, so

3x 3x = 3x+x = 32x .

b) Now we will use the fact that the exponents of factors are the same, and so we will re-write an bn as (ab)n .
3x 3x = (3 3)x = 9x

c) The expressions 32x and 9x are the same. We can use our third rule, (an )m = anm .
x
9x = 32 = 32 x = 32x .

Example 5. Find the prime-factorization of 24100 .

Solution: If we tried to enter 24100 in our calculator, we will probably nd that the number is too great for it to handle. So it
would be futile to compute the gigantic number and start the prime-factorization from scratch. Instead, we will use
the prime-factorization of 24 and rules of exponents. The prime-factorization of 24 = 23 3.
100 100
24100 = 23 3 = 23 3100 = 2300 3100 .

So the prime-factorization of 24100 is 2300 3100 .

c Hidegkuti, Emmett, Powell, 2008 Last revised: August 26, 2018

Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 7

Part 3 - Scienti c Notation

In physics, we use units that are internationally established by scientists. The abbreviation SI stands for (Système international
d'unités). In natural sciences such as chemistry and physics, we often have to communicate numbers so large that it is
uncomfortable for both of our imagination and even for our notation. Consider for example, the radius of the sun. The
SI unit of measuring length is meters.

The radius of the sun is 695 700 000 meters. The distance between our planet Earth and the Sun is approximately
149 600 000 000 meters. The basic particles that make up material are so tiny that a handful of some material includes a very
large number of particles. In chemistry, the basic measurement of how how much material we have (i.e. how many particles) is
1 mole. One mole of a substance contains approximately 602 214 076 000 000 000 000 000 particles.

Scienti c notation was developed to handle such uncomfortably large numbers, using properties of exponentiation. Scienti c
notation expresses a single number as a product, where the rst number (kind of, sort of) expresses the number, and the second
part expresses the number of zeroes to place after the number. Naturally, the de nition is going to be a bit more rigorous.

Example 6. Re-write 4 107 using regular notation.

Solution: If we look at ten-powers, we will notice some very nice properties.

101 = 10 and multiplying an integer by 10 results in adding a zero as its last digit. 4 101 = 40.
102 = 100 and multiplying an integer by 100 results in adding two zeroes as its last digits. 4 102 = 400.
103 = 1000 and multiplying an integer by 1000 results in adding three zeroes as its last digits. 4 103 = 4000.
104 = 10 000 and multiplying an integer by 10 000 results in adding four zeroes as its last digits. 4 104 = 40 000.
This is indeed a very nice pattern. The exponent on 10 is the same as the number of zeroes to be added at the end.
Therefore, we can interpret 4 107 as placing 7 zeroes after the digit 4.
4 107 = 40 000 000 .

Example 7. Re-write 3:215 1012 using regular notation.

Solution: When we are dealing with decimals, a multiplication by a 10 power means moving the decimal point.
3:215 10 = 32: 15, 3:215 100 = 321: 5; 3:215 1000 = 3215; and 3:125 10000 = 31250
Once we reached the end of the decimal, i.e. multiplied it by a ten-power large enough to create an integer,
multiplication by the remaining 10 powers is again a matter of placing zeroes at the end.
3:215 1012 = 3:215 103+9 = 3:215 103 109 = 3215 109 = 3215 000 000 000 .

.
De nition: We can write numbers in scienti c notation. This means to write a number as a product of
two numbers. The rst number is between 1 and 10 (can be 1 but must be less than 10), and
the second number is a 10 power. For example, the scienti c notation for
428 600 000 000 is 4:286 1011 .

Please note that scienti c notation uses the cross notation for multiplication. We will break with tradition and simply use the
dot notation for scienti c notation. Part of the problem with the cross notation is that in hand-written computations it looks too
much like the letter x.

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 8

Example 8. Re-write 602 200 000 000 000 000 000 000 using scienti c notation.
Solution: Let us rst count the trailing zeroes at the end. There are six groups of three zeroes and then two more, so that is 20.
So now we can re-write this giant number as 602 2 1020 . But remember that the rst factor in scienti c notation
must be between 1 and 10. So we will extract more ten-powers by moving the decimal point. When in doubt, check
with the calculator. 6022 = 602:2 10 = 60:22 100 = 6:022 1000: Thus our number is

602 200 000 000 000 000 000 000 = 602 2 1020 = (6:022 1000) 1020 = 6:022 103+20 = 6:022 1023

This number is famous in chemistry, it is called Avogadro's number. 1 mole of a substance contains 6:022 1023 particles.
Mole is the SI unit for the amount of a substance.

Example 9. Suppose that two numbers, A and B are given in scient ci notation as follows. A = 3 108 and B = 6 103 .
Compute each of the following. Present your answer in scienti c notation.
A
a) A + B b) A B c) AB d)
B
Solution: a) Surprisingly, A + B will look a whole lot like A. Scienti c notation will serve us very well in multiplications
and divisions, but we must be careful when adding or subtracting. To see what happens, we will return to regular
notation. Notice also that there is no rule for how to add exponential expressions in the rules we just learned.
A = 3 108 = 300 000 000 and B = 6 103 = 6000. So A + B = 300 000 000 + 6000 = 300 006 000.

This can be written in scienti c notation as 3:00006 103 or simply 3 108 . Basically, A is so much larger than
B, that the addition of B is almost negligible compared to the size of A. (Imagine that we added 1 inch to 1
mile or a penny to a million dollars) Indeed, in science, there will be agreements about the precision of results,
and in most agreements, 3 108 + 6 103 is simply 3 108 , as we round 3:00006 down to 3. So the answer is
300 006 000 or 3:00006 103 3 108 .

b) Very similarly, A B = 300 000 000 6000 = 299 994 000 . Using scienti c notation, the result is

2:99994 108 3 108 . We can imagine that we subtracted an inch from a mile or a penny from a million
dollars.
c) Scienti c notation will be awesome for mutiplication and division! Consider AB = 3 108 6 103 . We will
group the rst factors and the ten-powers. 3 6 = 18 and 108 103 = 103+8 = 1011 .
AB = 3 108 6 103 = (3 6) 108 103 = 18 1011
This is not in scienti c notation. Recall that in scienti c notation, the rst factor must be less than 10. So we
have to re-write 18 as 1:8 10.
AB = 18 1011 = (1:8 10) 1011 = 1:8 1012 . So the answer is 1:8 1012 = 1800 000 000 000 .
d) In order to help the division, we will re-write A from 3 108 to 30 107 . Then the rules of exponents will work
with the notation very nicely.
A 3 108 30 107
= =
B 6 103 6 103
an
We simply divide 30 by 6: As for the ten-powers, then cancellation can be expressed via the rule = an m.
am
A 30 107 5 107 3
= 3
= = 5 104 or 50 000 .
B 6 10 1

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 9

Sample Problems

1. Simplify each of the following.

4 2 2
a) 2x5 x4 c) 2x5 e) 2a3 2a4 2x5 y 3
g)
2x3 y 2
2
(2ab)3 3a2 b
3 3 h)
b) (2x)5 x4 d) ( xy)2 xy 2 f) 2a3 2ab2 ab2 a (6ab2 )2

2. Write each of the following expressions in terms of a xed number or a single exponential expression.

32x+1 8b 2 2b+1
a) b) c) 52x 1 253 x
9x 1 42b 3

3. Let us denote 3100 by M . Express each of the following in terms of M:

a) 3101 b) 3100 2 3101 + 3102 c) 399 d) 9100

4. Find the prime-factorization for each of the following numbers.

a) 102018 b) 181000 c) 36050 d) 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

5. Re-write each of the given numbers using scienti c notation.

a) 3800 000 000 b) 6250 000 000 000

6. Suppose that A = 5 1018 , and B = 8 107 : Compute each of the following. Present your answer using scienti c
notation.
4A
a) AB b) A2 c) 2A d)
B

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 10

Practice Problems

1. Simplify each of the following.

4 3
a) 32 c) 2a3 e) 2a2 b g) (2a)2 b3 i) 3p2 q 5 2pq 3

6
3 m4 m5 a2 a3
3
f) 2
h) j)
b) ( 3)2 d) 2a4 (2a) b ( a3 )2
m3
3 2 2 4 2 3
5ts3 t 4s2 t 3ab2 2a3 b 6a3 b5 12ab3
k) m) o)
(10st3 )2 ( 2ab)3 3ab2 6b2

4 2
2x2 y 3 xy 3 2x2 y
l)
2
2xy 3 xy 5 x2 n)
(2x)2 y 9 (2x2 y)4

2. Write each of the following expressions in terms of a xed number or a single exponential expression.

22x 1 100x+1 9x 4x+2

a) b) c)
4x 2 22x+1 5x 1 62x 1
3. Let P denote 52015 . Express each of the following in terms of P .

a) 52016 b) 52017 c) 52014 d) 252015 e) 52015 3 52016 + 52017

4. Find the prime-factorization for each of the given numbers.

a) 20100 b) 182000 c) 120120 d) (5 4 3 2 1)3

5. Re-write each of the given numbers in scienti c notation.

a) 21 000 000 000 b) 300 000 000 000 c) 325 000 000

6. Suppose that X = 3 1010 , and Y = 6 104 . Compute each of the following. Present your answer using scienti c
notation.
X 3X
a) X 2 b) XY c) d) 2
Y Y

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 11

Answers

Discussion

1. Two minus signs still cancel out each other, it is just that there are really three negative signs in the
expression ( 5)2 = ( 5) ( 5).

2. a and b appear in the denominator and division by zero is not allowed.

3. 2 5x = 2 |5 5 {z: : : 5} Imagine that x is very large. Then we have lots of 5-factors but just one 2-factor.
x times
In order to be able to simplify to 10x , we would need to see 2x 5x .

Sample Problems

1. a) 2x9 b) 32x9 c) 16x20 d) x5 y 8 e) 8a11 f) 16a7 b8 g) 2x7 y h) 2a4 b

M
2. a) 27 b) 2 c) 3125 3. a) 3M b) 4M c) d) M 2
3

4. a) 22018 52018 b) 21000 32000 c) 2150 3100 550 d) 28 34 52 7

5. a) 3:8 109 b) 6:25 1012 6. a) 4 1026 b) 2:5 1037 c) 1 1019 d) 2:5 1011

6. a) 9 1020 b) 1:8 1015 c) 5 105 d) 2:5 10

Practice Problems

1. a) 9 b) 9 c) 16a12 d) 8a12 e) 8a6 b3 f) 64a6 b3 g) 4a2 b3 h) m6 i) 6p3 q 8 j) a9

k) 20s11 t2 l) 4x5 y 11 m) 18a11 b5 n) x3 y 4 o) 32a7 b9 2. a) 8 b) 250 5x c) 96
P
3. a) 5P b) 25P c) d) P 2 e) 11P
5
4. a) 2200 5100 b) 22000 34000 c) 2360 3120 5120 d) 29 33 53

5. a) 2:1 1010 b) 3 1014 c) 3:25 108

6. a) 9 1020 b) 1:8 1015 c) 5 105 d) 2:5 10

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 12

Sample Problems - Solutions

Let us recall the rules of exponents.

1) an am = an+m
an
2) = an m
am
3) (an )m = anm
4) (ab)n = an bn
a n an
5) =
b bn

1. Simplify each of the following.

a) 2x5 x4
Solution: 2x5 x4 = 2x5 x4 = 2x5+4 = 2x9 by rule 1.

b) (2x)5 x4
Solution:

(2x)5 x4 = 25 x5 x4 by rule 4
= 32x5+4 by rule 1
= 32x9

4
c) 2x5
Solution:
4 4
2x5 = 24 x5 by rule 4
= 16x20 by rule 3

3
d) ( xy)2 xy 2
Solution:
3 3
( xy)2 xy 2 = ( 1xy)2 1xy 2 the 1s will help with signs
2 3
= ( 1)2 x2 y 2 ( 1)3 x3 y by rule 4
2 2 3 6
= 1 x y ( 1) x y by rule 3
= 1 ( 1) x2 x3 y 2 y 6 multiplication is commutative
2+3 2+6
= 1x y by rule 1
= x5 y 8

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 13

2
e) 2a3 2a4
Solution:
2 2
2a3 2a4 = 2a3 ( 2)2 a4 rule 4
= 2a3 (4) a8 rule 3
3 8
= 2 (4) a a multiplication is commutative
= 8a3+8 = 8a11 rule 1

3
f) 2a3 2ab2 ab2
Solution:
3 3
2a3 2ab2 ab2 = 2a3 ( 2)3 a3 b2 ab2 rule 4
3 3 6 2
= 2a ( 8) a b ab rule 3
3 3 6 2
= 2 ( 8) a a ab b multiplication is commutative
= 16a3+3+1 b6+2 = 16a7 b8 rule 1

2
2x5 y 3
g)
2x3 y 2
Solution:
2 2
2x5 y 3 ( 2)2 x5 y 3
= rule 4
2x3 y 2 2x3 y 2
4x10 y 3
= rule 3
2x3 y 2
4x10 3 y 3 2
= rule 2
2
4x7 y 1
= = 2x7 y
2

2
(2ab)3 3a2 b
h)
a (6ab2 )2
Solution:
2 2
(2ab)3 3a2 b (2ab)3 3a2 b
= the 1 will help with signs
a (6ab2 )2 1a (6ab2 )2
2 2
23 a3 b3 ( 3)2 a2 b
= by rule 4
1 a 62 a2 (b2 )2
8a3 b3 9 a4 b2 8 9 a3 a4 b3 b2
= = by rule 3
1 a 36 a2 b4 1 36 a a2 b4
72a3+4 b3+2 72a7 b5
= = by rule 1
36a1+2 b4 36a3 b4
7
2a b 5 72 72 2
= simplify numbers: = =
a3 b4 36 36 1
2a7 3 b5 4
= = 2a4 b1 = 2a4 b rule 2
1

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Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 14

2. Write each of the following expressions in terms of a xed number or a single exponential expression.
32x+1
a)
9x 1
an
Solution: We will re-write the denominator in terms of base 3: After that, we can apply = an m.
am

32x+1 32x+1 Rule 3 32x+1 32x+1 Rule 2

= = = = 32x+1 (2x 2)
= 32x+1 2x+2
= 33 = 27
9x 1 (32 )x 1 32(x 1) 32x 2

8b 2 2b+1
b)
42b 3
Solution: We will re-write each exponential expressions in terms of base 2:
b 2
8b 2 2b+1 8b 2 2b+1 23 2b+1 Rule 3 23(b 2) 2b+1 23b 6 2b+1 Rule 1 23b 6+(b+1)
= = = = =
42b 3 42b 3 (22 )2b 3 22(2b 3) 24b 6 24b 6
24b 5
Rule 2
= = 2(4b 5) (4b 6)
= 24b 5 4b+6
= 21 = 2
24b 6

c) 52x 1 253 x

3 x Rule 3 Rule 1
52x 1
253 x
= 52x 1
52 = 52x 1
52(3 x)
= 52x 1
56 2x
= = 52x 1+6 2x
= 55 = 3125

3. Let us denote 3100 by M . Express each of the following in terms of M:

a) 3101
Solution: Using rule 1, we write 3101 = 3100+1 = 3100 31 = M 3 = 3M

b) 3100 2 3101 + 3102

Solution: Using rule 1, we re-write 3101 and 3102

3101 = 3100+1 = 3100 31 = M 3 = 3M

3102 = 3100+2 = 3100 32 = M 9 = 9M

Then our expression becomes

3100 2 3101 + 3102 = M 2 (3M ) + 9M = M 6M + 9M = 5M + 9M = 4M

c) 399
3100 M
Solution: Using rule 2, we write 399 = 3100 1 = 1
=
3 3
d) 9100
Solution: This time we will use rule 3 in a novel way: (an )m = (am )n
100 2
9100 = 32 = 3100 = M2

We can also solve this problem using rule 4

9100 = (3 3)100 = 3100 3100 = M M = M 2

c Hidegkuti, Emmett, Powell, 2008 Last revised: August 26, 2018

Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 15

4. Find the prime-factorization for each of the following numbers.

a) 102018
Solution: We will nd the prime-factorization of the base and then apply rules of exponents.

102018 = (2 5)2018 = 22018 52018

b) 181000
Solution: We will nd the prime-factorization of the base and then apply rules of exponents.
1000 1000
181000 = (2 9)1000 = 2 32 = 21000 32 = 21000 32 1000 = 21000 32000

c) 36050
Solution: We will nd the prime-factorization of the base and then apply rules of exponents.

360 = 36 10 = (4 9) (2 5) = 23 32 5. So the prime factorization of 360 is 23 32 5.

50 50 50
36050 = 23 32 5 = 23 32 (5)50 = 23 50 32 50 550 = 2150 3100 550

d) The product 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 comes up a lot in mathematics, so there is notation for it.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 = 10! We pronounce 10! as ten factorial.
Now we just nd the prime-factorization of each factor and collect the prime-factorization that way.

10! = 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 we drop 1 at the end

2 3 2
= (2 5) 3 2 7 (2 3) 5 2 3 2

We collect the two-factors: one from 10; three from 8; one from 6, two from 4; and one from two. Similarly, the
three-factors: two from 9; one from 6 and one from 3: Five factors come out only from 10 and 5; one from each, and the
greatest prime factor is 7.

10! = (2 5) 32 23 7 (2 3) 5 22 3 2
= 21+3+1+2+1 32+1+1 51+1 7 = 28 34 52 7

c Hidegkuti, Emmett, Powell, 2008 Last revised: August 26, 2018

Lecture Notes Rules of Exponents page 16

5. Re-write each of the given numbers using scienti c notation.

a) 3800 000 000
Solution: 3800 000 000 ends in eight zeroes. This can be translated as
3800 000 000 = 38 108 . We are not done yet: the rst factor is too big, it must be between 1 and 10. So we re-write 38
as 3:8 10 and use the rules of exponents:
3800 000 000 = 38 108 = (3:8 10) 108 = 3:8 109
b) 6250 000 000 000
Solution: We count ten trailing zeroes, so
6250 000 000 000 = 625 1010 . We re-write 625 as 6:25 102 . So
6250 000 000 000 = 625 1010 = 6:25 102 1010 = 6:25 1012

6. Suppose that A = 5 1018 , and B = 8 107 : Compute each of the following. Present your answer using scienti c
notation.
4A
a) AB b) A2 c) 2A d)
B
Solution: AB = 5 1018 8 107 = (5 8) 1018 107 = 40 1025 = 4 1026
b) A2
2 2
Solution: A2 = 5 1018 = 52 1018 = 25 1018 2 = 25 1036 = 2:5 10 1036 = 2:5 1037
c) 2A
Solution: 2A = 2 5 1018 = (2 5) 1018 = 10 1018 = 1 1019
4A
d)
B
4A 4 5 1018 20 1018
Solution: = =
B 8 107 8 107
Unfortunately, 8 is not a divisor of 20, but it is a divisor of 200. So, we borrow a ten from the ten-power.
20 1018 200 1017
= = 25 1010 = 2:5 1011
8 107 8 107

For more documents like this, visit our page at https://teaching.martahidegkuti.com and click on Lecture Notes. E-mail
questions or comments to mhidegkuti@ccc.edu.

c Hidegkuti, Emmett, Powell, 2008 Last revised: August 26, 2018