What is negative 1third 3 to the 4th power

Question

What is negative 1 third to the 4th power

Answer 1

Well there are two ways this problem can be given:

1. -(1/3)^4 = -(1/3)(1/3)(1/3)(1/3) = -1/81
2. (-1/3)^4 = (-1/3)(-1/3)(-1/3)(-1/3) = 1/81

Therefore, the numerical value may be the same but the sign of the answer depends on the way in which the question was formatted.