simplify the expression. Assume that all variables represent positive numbers.
(36^-2y^4)-1/2(xy^1/2)
I can't get the answer to this I just don't know how to answer this problem. Can anyone help?
Thank You!
Ashley
What does 36^ mean? Is there a missing exponent? Is the (xy^1/2) term in a denominator or is it multiplied by 1/2 ?
Its (36x^-2y^4)^1/2(xy^1/2)
the ^ mean exponents...so 36x^-2 the -2 is the exponent...
In that case you should have written
(36x^-2)*[(y^4)^1/2]*x*y^1/2)
That would equal 36 x^(-3/2) * y^(3/2)
= 36 (y/x)^(3/2)
Sure, Ashley! I can help you with that.
To simplify the given expression, we need to simplify each term separately and then combine them.
Let's start with the first term: (36^-2y^4)
To simplify this, we can break it down step by step:
Step 1: Simplify the exponent:
36^-2 = 1/36^2 = 1/1296
Step 2: Simplify the base:
y^4 remains unchanged since there is no simplification possible.
So, the first term simplifies to (1/1296)y^4.
Now let's move on to the second term: -1/2(xy^1/2)
Again, we need to break it down step by step:
Step 1: Simplify the fraction:
-1/2 remains the same since there is no simplification possible.
Step 2: Simplify the variables:
xy^1/2 remains the same since there is no simplification possible.
So, the second term remains as -1/2(xy^1/2).
Finally, let's combine the simplified terms:
(1/1296)y^4 - 1/2(xy^1/2)
Since the two terms have different variables (y^4 vs. xy^1/2), they cannot be simplified further or combined.
Therefore, the simplified expression is (1/1296)y^4 - 1/2(xy^1/2).
I hope this explanation helps you understand how to simplify the given expression. Let me know if you have any further questions!