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Understanding Indices in Mathematics

Indices, or exponents, indicate how many times a number is multiplied by itself, with specific rules for multiplication, division, and powers. Key concepts include adding indices when multiplying, subtracting when dividing, and raising an exponent to another power by multiplying indices. Additionally, any number raised to the power of 0 equals 1, negative indices represent reciprocals, and fractional indices denote roots of the base.

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40 views1 page

Understanding Indices in Mathematics

Indices, or exponents, indicate how many times a number is multiplied by itself, with specific rules for multiplication, division, and powers. Key concepts include adding indices when multiplying, subtracting when dividing, and raising an exponent to another power by multiplying indices. Additionally, any number raised to the power of 0 equals 1, negative indices represent reciprocals, and fractional indices denote roots of the base.

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emredersiniz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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In mathematics, indices, also known as powers or exponents, are used to

express how many times a number or variable is multiplied by itself. For


example, in the expression 2⁴, the number 4 is the index of 2, indicating
that 2 is multiplied by itself 4 times.

2⁴ = 2 X 2 X 2 X 2

Multiplying Indices: When multiplying expressions with the same base,


you add the indices. (aᵐ⋅aⁿ​=aᵐ⁺ⁿ)

For example: 2² × 2³ ﹦ 2²⁺³ ﹦2⁵

Dividing Indices: When dividing expressions with the same base, you
subtract the indices. (aᵐ÷aⁿ​=aᵐ⁻ⁿ)

For example: 3⁵ ÷ 3² ﹦ 3⁵⁻² ﹦ 3³

Power of a Power: When raising an exponent to another power, you


multiply the indices.( (aᵐ)ⁿ​=aᵐⁿ​)

For example: (3⁵)² = 3⁵ˣ² = 3¹⁰

Power of 0: Any number (except 0) raised to the power of 0 is equal to 1.


(a⁰=1)

For example: 5⁰=1

Negative Indices: A negative index indicates the reciprocal of the base


raised to the positive index. (a⁻ⁿ = 1 )
aⁿ

For example: 5⁻²= 1

5²
Fractional Indices: A fractional index represents a root of the base.
(aᵐ÷ⁿ ​= ⁿaᵐ​)

For example: 2³÷² = ²√2³ = (²√2)³

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