Question

Express 160 as the product of its prime factors. Write the prime factors in ascending order and give your answer in index form

Answer 1

`160 = 2^5*5`

Explanation:

Prime factors

The first primes are:

2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13...

Factoring a number in prime factors implies dividing it by the numbers above and listing those factors whose division is a whole number, i.e. no remainder is left.

The number 160 can be divided by 2:

160 / 2 =80

Let's try dividing by 2 until possible:

80 / 2 = 40

40 / 2 = 20

20 / 2 = 10

10 / 2 = 5

The last factor can only be divided by 5. The list of factors is:

160 = 2*2*2*2*2*5

Expressing in index form:

`160 = 2^5*5`