francisco's calculator tells him that 9^-1/2 is equal to 1/3. Using properties of exponents explain this equivalence

Answer 1

using laws of exponents, we know that x^-a = 1/(x^a), and we also know that x^1/2 =√x, so Francisco's calculator is solving 9^(-1/2) =1/(9^1/2)=1/√9=1/3.

Answer 2

I hope this is helpful!