negative inside parenthesis vs. outside

[haleemasj]

Hi,
I get confused with the negative sign inside of the parenthesis and/or outside the parenthesis. For example,

(-1) vs. -1

Which is negative: (-1)^3 or -1^3, what about squaring it?

Thanks!

[tommywallach]

Hey Haleem,

You are not alone! This is a highly confusing issue; most people haven't seen it anywhere but on this test!

When the negative sign is inside the parentheses, it will be repeated in each element of the exponential operation:

(-2) ^ 4 = (-2) * (-2) * (-2) * (-2) = 16

When the negative sign is outside of parentheses, it is added after the operation is complete:

-(2^4) = -(2 * 2 * 2 * 2) = -16

When there are no parentheses, the negative is added after the operation is complete (just as in the example right above this one):

-2^4 = -(2^4) = -(2 * 2 * 2 * 2) = -16

Hope that helps!

-t