Edit: sorry about the title, it was warped when I pressed Control + z

[AVReidy]

Edit: sorry about the title, it was warped when I pressed Control + z a few times. This is a question about monomials.

Homework Statement

How do I simplify (2n)⁴ + 2n⁴?

Homework Equations

N/A

The Attempt at a Solution

The problem I'm having is with the parenthesis. So really I just want to simplify (2n)⁴.

Would it be 2n⁴ or 16n⁴? The first one seems more intuitive, but I have no idea what it should be.

I'd really appreciate some help. This is the only part of math that I find unattractive.

 

[Ray Vickson]

Edit: sorry about the title, it was warped when I pressed Control + z a few times. This is a question about monomials.

Homework Statement

How do I simplify (2n)⁴ + 2n⁴?

Homework Equations

N/A

The Attempt at a Solution

The problem I'm having is with the parenthesis. So really I just want to simplify (2n)⁴.

Would it be 2n⁴ or 16n⁴? The first one seems more intuitive, but I have no idea what it should be.

I'd really appreciate some help. This is the only part of math that I find unattractive.

For any a, a^4 means a*a*a*a, so (2n)^4 means 2n * 2n * 2n * 2n = 16n^4. Never mind your "intuition" about what you think symbols _should_ mean. They have conventional meanings that are hundreds of years old.

RGV