document.write( "Question 1202091: why -2 to the power of 4 = -16?
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Algebra.Com's Answer #836830 by math_tutor2020(3817)\"\" \"About 
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\n" ); document.write( "It's a matter of order of operations (PEMDAS)\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "If we write (-2)^4, then
\n" ); document.write( "(-2)^4 = (-2)*(-2)*(-2)*(-2) = 16
\n" ); document.write( "The (-2)^4 means \"multiply four copies of (-2) together to get 16\"
\n" ); document.write( "The four negatives pair up and cancel out
\n" ); document.write( "negative * negative = positive\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "If on the other hand we have -(2^4), then,
\n" ); document.write( "-(2)^4 = -(2)*(2)*(2)*(2) = -16
\n" ); document.write( "The key difference this time is the negative doesn't get copied four times
\n" ); document.write( "We evaluate 2^4 first, then stick a negative at the front, to end up with -16.
\n" ); document.write( "Recall that PEMDAS has us do the parenthesis part first, then multiplication later. Think of -(2^4) as -1*(2^4)\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Side note: many calculators will interpret -2^4 as -(2^4) and not as (-2)^4
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