how do i solve 46.2x10to the power of -2

Hi, Vanessa! All you'll need to do to find your answer is move the decimal point two places to the left because the exponent is 2 and it is negative. If you move the decimal point two places to the left, you arrive at the answer: .462. If the exponent was a positive 2, you would have moved the decimal point two places to the right to arrive at the correct answer.

Hi Vanessa,

46.2 x 10^-2 = 46.2 ÷ 100 = 0.462

This is because negative exponents show that that term in the expression is really under the division bar.

So, 10^-2 really means 1 / 10²  or 1/100 or ÷ 100

When we divide by 100, the decimal point moves two places to the left in the number.