Square roots are most often written using a radical sign, like this, . But there is another way to represent the taking of a root. You can use rational exponents instead of a radical. A rational exponent is an exponent that is a fraction. For example, can be written as .
Can’t imagine raising a number to a rational exponent? They may be hard to get used to, but rational exponents can actually help simplify some problems. Let’s explore the relationship between rational (fractional) exponents and radicals.
Rewriting Radical Expressions Using Rational Exponents
