Question

(7.40m)^2+100.0m^2

do I square the numbers or is that just for the unit m?
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Answer 1

Depends on the context however this appears to be units for area and should be simplified to 107.4m²

Explanation:

The answer to this depends on the context. If m represents a variable where an unknown number is then you must square both 7.40 and m in the parenthesis (7.40m)^2. However, from what is written here this is an area expression and the units are meters squared or m². In this case, it does not represent a variable. You should add the areas together since they are the same unit to simplify the expression.

(7.40m)^2+100.0m^2 = 7.4m² + 100m² = 107.4m²