Key learning points

1. The index tells you how many identical terms you must multiply together.
2. By studying the structure of multiplication, you can see how the index will change.
3. When multiplying powers with the same bases, the indices can be summed.
4. This process can be made quicker as repeated addition can be more efficiently calculated through multiplication.
5. (a^b)^c = a^(bc)

Keywords

• Index - An exponent is a number positioned above and to the right of a base value. It indicates repeated multiplication. An alternative word for this is index (plural indices).

• Coefficient - A numerical coefficient is a constant multiplier of the variables in a term.

• Power - 16 is the fourth power of 2. Alternatively this can be written as 2^4 which is read as “2 to the power of 4”.

Common misconception