Im A bit rusty, so I need a refresher and maybe an explanation on negatives and exponents. The problem I have is -7^2 I thought it was 49 my calculator says its -49. what would -7^2 be equal to? for example 4^2 = 4*4=16 so why doesn't -7^2= - 7 *- 7 because that would be 49 but it's not it's -49 why is that the case?

Elementary Algebra
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Chapter6: Polynomials
Section6.7: Integer Exponents And Scientific Notation
Problem 587E: When you convert a number from decimal notation to scientific notation, how do you know if the...
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Im A bit rusty, so I need a refresher and maybe an explanation on negatives and exponents. The problem I have is -7^2 I thought it was 49 my calculator says its -49. what would -7^2 be equal to?

for example 4^2 = 4*4=16

so why doesn't -7^2= - 7 *- 7 because that would be 49 but it's not it's -49 why is that the case? 

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