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Sub 505 (Easy)|   Exponents|                  
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Bunuel
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Hi All,

While this question might look a little "scary", the answer choices are small numbers and we're just asked to find the one that completes the given equation, so we can use "brute force" on this question.

We're looking for the value of M that makes (-2)^(2M) = 2^(9-M)

We can work through the answers in order (although you might realize that the first couple are much TOO small, given the exponents in this prompt).

IF....
M = 1
(-2)^2 = 4
2^8 = 256
These are NOT equal

M = 2
(-2)^4 = 16
2^7 = 128
These are NOT equal

M = 3
(-2)^6 = 64
2^6 = 64
These ARE equal, so this MUST be the answer.

Final Answer:
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
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What if the question was (-2)^3m = 2^9-m?
Is this possible?
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What if the question was (-2)^3m = 2^9-m?
Is this possible?

No real m satisfies that equation.
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Bunuel
The Official Guide For GMAT® Quantitative Review, 2ND Edition

If m is an integer such that \((-2)^{2m} = 2^{9 - m}\), then m=

(A) 1
(B) 2
(C) 3
(D) 4
(E) 6



Recall that when a negative number is raised to an even power, the result is positive. Since 2m is even, (-2)^(2m) = 2^(2m), and we have:

2^(2m) = 2^(9 - m)

2m = 9 - m

3m = 9

m = 3

Answer: C
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since 2m is even, then 9-m must be even
we can exclude all even numbers : 2,4,6, we left with 1 and 3
2*1 = 2
9-1 = 8
so one is not the solution
2*3 = 6
9-3 = 6
so m = 3 .
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(-2)^2m=2^(9-m)
=> (-1*2)^2m= 2^(9-m)
=> (-1)^2m +2^2m=2^(9-m)
=>2^2m=2^(9-m)
=> 2m= 9-m
=> m=3
* whatever m is odd or even the power of -1 will always even number as multiplied by 2 and resulting in +1
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