Expert: Richard J. Raridon - 6/24/2008

Question
Can you please explain the different rules of exponents. I am having a hard time understaing them. These are the rules I am talking about. Thank you.
Negative exponents:
Product Rule:
Quotient Rule:
Power Rule:
Raising a product to a power:
Raising a quotient to a power:
Scientific notation:

Answer
first of all you can write exponents as x^2, y^1/2, z^3, w^5/3, etc.
1/x^2 = x^-2, a negative exponent.  
(x^3)(x^5) = x^8
(x^5)/(x^3) = x^2
(x^3)^2 = x^6
(x^2y^3)^2 = x^2y^6
(x^2/y^3)^2 = x^4/y^6 or x^4y^-6
Scientific notation means writing a number with only one digit to the left of the decimal point.  
So you would write 103 as 1.03x10^2, 0.0093 as 9.3x10^-3, etc.