## How to Check If a Number Is a Power of Two

How can you tell if a number is a power of two?

That’s easy if it’s in the form 2n, where n is an integer. For example, 212, 20, and 2-37 are powers of two. That is by definition. But what about arbitrary positive numbers like 16,392, 524,288, or 0.00390625? Are they powers of two? Here’s how to tell — if they can be simplified to the form 2n, they are; if they can’t, they’re not.

## Composing Powers of Two Using The Laws of Exponents

Powers of two can be combined, under the laws of exponents, to create other powers of two. Under these rules, you can multiply powers of two, divide powers of two, or raise a power of two to a power and still get another power of two. You can combine these rules to create complicated expressions, expressions that result in a single power of two. For example,

.

The laws of exponents apply generally to any base; two is no different. But since we’re interested in powers of two, we’ll couch them in terms of powers of two. Once we explain the laws in this way, you’ll understand the math behind the example above.