Calculate the Absolute Value of 5 Squared

The order of operations says to do exponents before absolute value. The expression $|5^2|$ means "find the absolute value of 5 squared," not "square the absolute value of 5."

You'd still get the same answer! $(-5)^2 = 25$, then $|25| = 25$. When you square any real number, the result is always non-negative.

Not in this case! Since $5^2 = 25$ is already positive, the absolute value doesn't change it. The absolute value of any positive number is just the number itself.

Great question! $(|5|)^2$ means "find the absolute value of 5, then square it" = $5^2 = 25$. While both give 25 here, they're different operations and would give different results with expressions like $|(-3)^3|$.

Absolute value matters when the expression inside could be negative! For example, $|(-4)^3| = |-64| = 64$, but $(|-4|)^3 = 4^3 = 64$. With even exponents like squares, both methods give the same result.