Question

Can somebody explain how to simplify this expression? Negative 2y to the negative 1 power, all inside parentheses, with a negative 2 exponent outside the parentheses.

Answer 1

using math notation for staters

Answer 2

\[(-2y^{-1})^{-2}\]

Answer 3

this?

Answer 4

\[-2^{-2} y^2\]
\[-\frac{y^2}{4}\] maybe?

Answer 5

Is it still a minus (if it was inside the paren)?

Answer 6

Yes, you set it up right, amistre.

Answer 7

I suspect the answer may be \[y ^{2}\over 4\]

Answer 8

Maybe amisstrte64 will come back and verify his answer.

Answer 9

I think it is 4y^2

Answer 10

...because it looks like this is the expression...
(-2y^-1)^-2
Multiplying exponents
(-2y)^2
Expanding brackets
4y^2

Answer 11

I went this direction, but I do see your logic. I may have violated order of operations:\[(-2y ^{-1})^{-2}\] to:\[1\over (-2y ^{-1})^{2}\]then to:\[1\over 4 y ^{-2}\] finally\[y ^{2}\over 4\]

Answer 12

\[(-2y^{-1})^{-2}=(-2)^{-2}y^2=\frac{y^2}{(-2)^2}=\frac{y^2}{4}\]\]

Answer 13

Help me out here satellite73

Answer 14

if that was the problem to beginwith

Answer 15

we get \[\frac{y^2}{4}\] yes?

Answer 16

hello radar! here to celebrate amistre's 1000 medal

Answer 17

that is what i got, amistre got a -y^2/4

Answer 18

hope it is soon cause i got to run

Answer 19

before you run look at gianfranco solution above, what is wrong with that approach beside getting a different answer???

Answer 20

well if the question is as he wrote it, you have to raise (-2) to the power of -2, not the same as
\[-2^{-2}\]

Answer 21

you should get a 4 in the denominator

Answer 22

gianfraco was acting as if it was
\[((-2y)^{-1})^{-2}\]

Answer 23

but that is now how i read the problem. i read it as only the y being raised to the power of -1. if there were no parentheses that is what it means

Answer 24

i read it the way you did

Answer 25

I can see that that would make a difference.

Answer 26

of course. like the difference between \[(2\times 3)^2\] and \[2\times 3^2\]

Answer 27

Understand. Thanks for clearing up a few things.

Answer 28

O never mind everybody..I think I've figured it out.

Answer 29

I was hoping you would