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3 Square roots and cube roots

EXPLORING POWERS OF INTEGERS

TASK 1 Investigate squared integers

To square a number, multiply it by itself.

Examples

52 = 5 × 5 (–7)2 = –7 × –7
= 25 = 49

1 Evaluate these squares:

32 = (−3)2 = 102 = (−10)2 =

2 Is the following statement true? Explain your reasoning.

When you square any number, the answer is always positive.

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TASK 2 Investigate integers with even and odd powers

1 Use a calculator to evaluate these. (On most calculators, you use or to enter powers.)

(–6)4 = (–3)8 = (–2)10 =

2 All three above powers are even and all three answers are positive. Explore some other numbers
raised to even powers to see if this is always true.

3 Now explore some negative numbers raised to odd powers. What do you notice about the sign of
the answer? (Positive or negative).

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4 Use these results to find the value of (−1) 80 and (−1) 81 without using a calculator.

(−1)80 = (−1)81 =

© 2022 Cambridge University Press Chapter 1: Integers