Evaluate the following expression.

3^-2

1/9

To evaluate the expression 3^-2, we need to understand that the exponent represents the number of times the base is multiplied by itself.

In this case, the base is 3, and the exponent is -2.

A negative exponent indicates the reciprocal (or the multiplicative inverse) of the base raised to the positive version of the exponent.

To evaluate 3^-2, we can rewrite it as 1 / 3^2.

Now, we can evaluate 3^2, which equals 9.

So, the expression 3^-2 is equivalent to 1 / 9.

Therefore, the answer is 1/9.