Exponents - Grade 10
Exponents - Grade 10
INTRODUCTION
Exponential notation is a short way of writing the same number multiplied by
itself many times. This is very useful in everyday life.
You may have heard someone describe the size of an area in square meters
or square kilometers. For example, the largest radio telescope in the world is
being built in South Africa. The telescope is called the square kilometer array, or
SKA. This is because the telescope will occupy an area of 11 kilometer
by 11 kilometer or 11 kilometer squared.
Exponents are also very useful to describe very large and very small numbers. For
example, the SKA will be detecting incredibly weak signals from objects which are
so far away that to write out the strength of the signal or the number of
kilometers away in full would be impractical. Outside of astronomy, exponents
are used by many other professions such as computer programmers, engineers,
economists, financial analysts, biologists and demographers.
If you want to know more about how exponents are used then take a look at the
following presentation.
You have already been introduced to exponents and exponent laws in previous
grades. Remember that exponents can also be called indices or powers.
Exponential notation is as follows:
5 ×5 ×5 ×5=54
p × p × p= p3
(3 x )0=1
1 1
2− 4= =
2 16
4
1
−x
=5 x
5
If your final answer is easier to work out without a calculator, then write it
out in full - not in exponential notation, as in examples 1 and 5.
It is convention to write your final answer with positive exponents.
Mathematics cards
3 × 4=3+3+3+3=12
3 4=3 ×3 ×3 × 3=81 (−3 )2= (−3 ) × (−3 )=+ 9
(−3 )3 =(−3 ) × (−3 ) × (−3 )=−27
If Base is negative :
Even power Positive result
Odd power Negative result
2 ×4=¿ (−4 )2=¿
24 =¿ (−4 )5=¿
5 ×2=¿ (−8 )2 =¿
52=¿ (−8 )3 =¿
2 ×5=¿ (−5 ) 4=¿
25=¿ (−5 )3 =¿
7 ×3=¿ (−2 )1=¿
73 =¿ (−2 )2=¿
8 ×3=¿ (−11 )2 =¿
83 =¿ (−11 )1 =¿
5 ×7=¿ (−9 )3 =¿
57 =¿ (−9 )2=¿
1 ×6=¿ (−7 )2 =¿
16=¿ (−7 )1 =¿
a 0=1(a ≠ 0 because 00 is undefined) and 11=1
and (−1)2=1(−1)3=−1
30 =1 (−1)1000=1
(−5 )0 =1 (−1 )57=−1
10=¿ (−1)10=¿
(−3 )0 =¿ (−1 )13=¿
100 =¿ (−1)103 =¿
(−18 )0 =¿ (−1 )5 04=¿
70 =¿ (−1)10000=¿
(−8 )0=¿ (−1 )20 5 4=¿
20=¿ (−1)1 2=¿
(−7 )0 =¿ (−1 )5 07=¿
110 =¿ (−1)512=¿
(−9 )0=¿ (−1 )215 =¿
4 0=¿ (−1)17 =¿
(−25 )0 =¿ (−1 )100 =¿
1 30=¿ (−1)300 =¿
(−8 )0=¿ (−1 )5 01=¿