Do you actually need to use math exponents?

The answer is no . People didn't begin to use exponents until a few hundred years ago.

It is OK to multiply out the numbers and use the result . That is what people did until exponents were invented.

In the example shown above, . You can just use the 8 rather than 2³ if you wish.

So what is the point of using math exponents?

• Scientific Notation
  (represents large and small numbers as exponents of 10 )
  
  You can use an interactive Scientific Notation calculator on-line
  
  
  http://freeonlinecalculator.net/calculators/math/scientificnotation.php
  
  http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/scientific-calculator-d_1302.html
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• Engineering Notation
  (Engineering Notation is very similar to Scientific Notation. However, Engineering Notation forces different numbers to have exactly the same exponents for comparison purposes eg: lists all numbers as millions, or thousands, etc. In addition, Engineering Notation only uses powers of 10 that are divisible by 3 such as 10³ or 10²¹)
  
  Calculator Tutorial - Engineering Notation - Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzZOIb7txGk
  
  EXCEL can be formatted to display Engineering Notation http://people.stfx.ca/bliengme/ExcelTips/EngineeringNotation.htm
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• Logarithms
  ( logarithms are exponents )
  
  You can use an interactive Logarithms calculator on-line http://www.1728.org/logrithm.htm
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• Slide rules
  (slide rules multiply and divide numbers by adding and subtracting exponents )
  
  You can use an interactive (virtual) slide rule on-line - use the FireFox browser to display properly (FireFox can be downloaded at no charge at: http://en-us.www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/ ) slide rule: http://www.antiquark.com/sliderule/sim/n909es/virtual-n909-es.html digital slide rule: http://www.teacherlink.org/content/math/interactive/flash/sliderule/sliderule.html more virtual slide rules: http://www.marksmath.com/slide-rules/virtual/index.html )
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• The Richter Scale for measuring the magnitude of earthquakes (The Richter Scale is a scale of exponents . An increase of magnitude of 1 on the Richter Scale means the magnitude of an earthquake has increased 10 times.
  
  You can use an interactive Richter Scale calculator on-line http://www.ajdesigner.com/phpseismograph/earthquake_seismometer_richter_scale_amplitude.php
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• The Decibel Scale for measuring the relative magnitude of two sounds (The Decibel Scale is a scale of exponents . An increase of 3 decibels is a doubling in the intensity of sound. An increase of 10 decibels is an increase of 10 times the intensity of sound.
  
  You can use an interactive Decibel Scale calculator on-line http://www.daycounter.com/Calculators/Decibels-Calculator.phtml )

Math Exponents: impact your day-to-day finances

Although most people may not stop to think about it, exponents impact most routine financial transactions, either directly or indirectly. Banks, credit unions, the government, car dealerships, and other businesses use exponents to calculate interest and penalties.

For example:

When you deposit money in a bank, the bank will use exponents to calculate how much interest you account has earned . If the bank will pay you compound monthly interest on your deposit, the formula used is:

Total $ in Your Account = ( Original Deposit)( 1+r ) ^{( m )}

r = monthly interest rate entered as a decimal (eg - 1% interest per month would be entered as 0.01); the exponent, m = number of months money is left in the account

If you deposit $100 in an account which pays 1% compounded interest per month, and leave your money in the account for 14 months, your balance can be calculated as:

Total $ in Your Account = ( $100 Deposit)( 1+0.01 ) ^{( 14 )}

= $114.95