The question is worded a bit strangely (in my opinion anyway), but I think your teacher wants you to describe how exponents work.
Let's say we had the expression 
The base is 5 as its the bottom most value (think of something like the base of a tree or building). The exponent is 3.
The exponent of 3 tells the reader to multiply the base 5 by itself 3 times like so

With larger exponents, it becomes more tedious to write out all the repeated multiplications, which is why many calculators have an exponent button to save time.
Using the given equation and edge length:
V = 45^3
V = 45 x 45 x 45
V = 91,125 cubic meters
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The fabric costs $8.95 per yard
It's impossible because there is no "N" point in rectangle JKLM.