Multiplication of powers with same base

Introduction

Have you ever wondered how scientists write huge numbers, like the distance from Earth to the sun? Instead of writing long strings of zeros, they use exponents. Understanding how to multiply powers with the same base helps make these calculations simpler and faster....

Maya is in math class, solving a problem: Simplify 2⁴ × 2³.

She begins by expanding the powers. She writes 2⁴ as 2 multiplied by itself 4 times, and 2³ as 2 multiplied by itself 3 times.

Then she multiplies both expressions together and gets seven factors of 2.

Maya realizes this simplifies to 2...