Help a newbie with a calculation result

[Skfir]

Hi guys. Sorry, I am a pianist, doing math for the sake of self-education. SO I am quite stupid in it. I enter the following in my HP Prime: -2^4 and it gives me the result -16, but shouldn't it be positive 16? because -2*-2*-2*-2=16?
Sorry apparently I am just dumb, but please explain.

[salvomic]

(09-14-2017 05:24 PM)Skfir Wrote:  Hi guys. Sorry, I am a pianist, doing math for the sake of self-education. SO I am quite stupid in it. I enter the following in my HP Prime: -2^4 and it gives me the result -16, but shouldn't it be positive 16? because -2*-2*-2*-2=16?
Sorry apparently I am just dumb, but please explain.

hi,
is a problem of "order of operations" (see here).
(-2)^4 is 16, instead -2^4 is the same as (-2)^4 that's simply -16.
-2*-2*-2*-2 is seen with *implicit (), but not the power (-2^4)...

Salvo

[John Colvin]

The result is correct because of the order of operations. Powers and roots are evaluated
before addition/subtraction and signs, You get the result +16 by entering
(-2)^4 where parentheses take precedence over the other operations.

[DrD]

No, you are not dumb. (-2)^4 is 16. However you have entered -2^4, which is -1*(2^4), which is -16.

-Dale-

[Aries]

(09-14-2017 05:24 PM)Skfir Wrote:  Hi guys. Sorry, I am a pianist, doing math for the sake of self-education. SO I am quite stupid in it. I enter the following in my HP Prime: -2^4 and it gives me the result -16, but shouldn't it be positive 16? because -2*-2*-2*-2=16?
Sorry apparently I am just dumb, but please explain.

That result is correct, you have to take note of the parenthesis:
-2^4=-16, (-2)^4=+16.
Best,

Aries ;-)

[Skfir]

Oh!! Got it!! Thank you guys!!

[Aries]

You are welcome, Skfir ;-)
Best,

Aries :-)