1) Are the expressions 2x to the third power and (2x) to the third power equivalent? Explain your answer.

No they aren't. When (2x) is in parenthesis it means the 2 and the x are raised to the third power. When it is written as just 2x to the third power, only the x is raised to the third.

2) Is the operation of raising to a power comunitiative? That is, is a to the b power = to b to thhe a power? Explain why or why not.

 No it is not. Because if I have 4 to the fifth power that means 4*4*4*4*4 = 1,024. To flip it, 5 to the fourth power is 5*5*5*5 = 625.

3) Explain why 2 raised to the -3 power is not equal to -8.

2 raised to the third power is the same as 1/(2)3 which equals 1/8. The negative expoent means we are going to have a number less than 1.