Welcome back, class! Today is an exciting day in Professor Baker's Math Class. We are shifting gears from complex roots to powerful exponents. We have two main agendas today: showcasing your creativity with the Quadratic Formula and beginning our review of Powers.

1. Quadratic Formula Project Presentations

It is time to present your Creative Display Projects! I am looking forward to seeing how you have interpreted the formula through videos, songs, skits, art, or even food. As a reminder, the formula we have been studying is:

$$ x = \frac{-b \pm \sqrt{b^2-4ac}}{2a} $$

Grading Reminder: Your project is worth a total of 150 points (20 for the idea, 10 for the rubric, and 120 for the project itself). Please ensure you have your rubric attached.

Important: If your project is not turned in during your class period today, you will lose 20 points per day it is late. Don't let your hard work lose value!

2. Introduction to Powers (Exponents)

After our presentations, we are moving on to Powers. The "Power of Math" isn't just a catchy phrase; it's a fundamental concept in Algebra.

A power is the product of a repeated factor. To evaluate the power of a number, multiply the factor by itself the correct number of times.

  • Example: $3^4 = 3 \cdot 3 \cdot 3 \cdot 3 = 81$

Special Rules to Remember:

As outlined in today's class notes, keep these special properties in mind:

  1. Power of One: Any nonzero number raised to a power of one is the number itself ($5^1 = 5$).
  2. Zero Power: Any nonzero number raised to a power of zero is 1 ($13^0 = 1$).

Order of Operations

When evaluating expressions, remember to calculate powers before adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

Example from class notes:
$(-4)^3 + 6^2$
$= (-4 \cdot -4 \cdot -4) + (6 \cdot 6)$
$= -64 + 36$
$= -28$

3. Homework & Assignments

To practice these concepts, please complete the following worksheets attached to this post:

  • "Are You Ready? Evaluate Powers" Worksheet: Practice finding the value of expressions like $10^3 \div 5^3$ and working with negative bases.
  • "The Power of Math" Enrichment Worksheet: This is a puzzle activity. Evaluate the powers in Column 1 (like $(-2)^5$) and match them to the answers in Column 2 to solve the riddle: "What kind of math involves rotations, reflections, and translations?"

4. Discussion Question of the Day

Topic: Real-World Formulas

Give an example of a formula used in your specific trade or career path that contains exponents. Explain what this formula is used to calculate.

Instructions: If you cannot type the formula directly into the comment box, please provide a link to a website showing the formula, but you must still state the name of the formula and its explanation in your post. Note: Only the first person to post a specific formula will receive credit, so be original!