Question

What’s the difference between numbers that are to the power of with parentheses and no parentheses. For example (-2/5)^3 and -2/5^3. Please explain this rule and thank you.

Answer 1

Answer:

See below

Step-by-step explanation:

The first one 'cubes' the denominator AND the numerator:

(-2/5)^3  = -2/5  * -2/5  * -2/5 =  -8/125

The second one 'cubes' only the denominator:

-2/5^3  = -2 / (5 * 5 * 5) =  - 2 / 125