What happens when you raise a negative number to the power of 2?

When you raise a negative number to the power of 2, you are essentially multiplying that negative number by itself. For example, if you take the negative number -3 and raise it to the power of 2, the calculation would look like this:

-3 × -3 = 9

In this case, the two negative signs cancel each other out, resulting in a positive number. Therefore, the general rule is that any negative number raised to an even exponent (like 2, 4, 6, etc.) will always yield a positive result.

To illustrate further, let’s consider another negative number, -5:

-5 × -5 = 25

Once again, the outcome is positive. This is a fundamental property of arithmetic and helps explain why negative numbers can ‘lose’ their negativity when squared.

In summary, when you raise any negative number to the power of 2, the result will always be a positive number.