An exponent is a number that tells you how many times the base number should be used as a factor. For example, 2⁴ indicates that the base number 2 is used as a factor 4 times, which means you need to multiply 2*2*2*2, which will give you the result of 16.

If a negative number is raised to an even power, the result will be positive. For example, (-3)⁴ = -3 * -3 * -3 * -3 = 81 
If a negative number is raised to an odd power, the result will be negative. For example, (-3)⁵ = -3 * -3 * -3 * -3 * -3 = -729

The negative number must be enclosed by parentheses to have the exponent apply to the negative term. For example, (-2)⁴ = -2 * -2 * -2 * -2 = 16. However, -2⁴ = -(2 * 2 * 2 * 2) = -16

It is important to note that:

• 0 raised to any power is 0 (e.g. 0⁵ = 0)
• 1 raised to any power is 1 (e.g. 1⁵ = 1)
• Any number raised to the 0 power is 1 (e.g. 7⁰ = 1)
• Any number raised to the 1 power is that number itself. (e.g. 7¹ = 7)