\( \frac{\text { Directions: Simplify }}{\text { 1. }\left(x^{4}\right)^{2}} \)

When you have an expression like \(\left(x^{4}\right)^{2}\), you apply the power of a power rule, which states that you multiply the exponents. So, here you would multiply 4 by 2, giving you \(x^{4 \times 2} = x^{8}\). This means that \(\left(x^{4}\right)^{2}\) simplifies beautifully to \(x^{8}\). Just think of it as stacking four squares twice, resulting in eight total squares stacked!