I loved this post. :o)


>David,
>
>We can get linguistic here and simply ask how does one write -2 squared in a math equation? I was always taught the squared means raised to the power of 2 which would be -2^2 for -2 squared and since we know that -2 squared is 4 there's the answer.
>
>To deal with the sitckier folks who might say that -2 squared is written as -1*2^2 then we ask how does one write 2 squared? I can't imagine anyone suggersting that 2 squared is written as 1*2^2, that would indicate that 2 is written as 1*2 or that -2 is written as -1*2 (which when reduced equals -2) ahem, are we sufficiently going in circles here yet?