Expanding (2a)^3 Without Exponents
The expression (2a)^3 represents the product of (2a) multiplied by itself three times. To expand this without using exponents, we can write it out as:
(2a)^3 = (2a) * (2a) * (2a)
Now, let's expand this step by step:
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Multiply the first two terms: (2a) * (2a) = 2 * 2 * a * a = 4a^2
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Multiply the result by the third term: 4a^2 * (2a) = 4 * 2 * a^2 * a = 8a^3
Therefore, the expanded form of (2a)^3 without exponents is 8a^3.
Key Points:
- Multiplication is commutative: The order in which we multiply doesn't change the result. For example, 2 * 3 is the same as 3 * 2.
- Multiplication is associative: We can group factors in different ways without affecting the result. For example, (2 * 3) * 4 is the same as 2 * (3 * 4).
This process illustrates how to break down expressions with exponents into their expanded forms, which can be useful for understanding the underlying mathematical operations.