“Complicated” math is built out of simple math.

Squared and cubed are just ways of saying the same number multiplied by itself twice(squared) and thrice(cubed).

The reasons why they are called that is a reference to the most common use of that math, a square has 2 equal dimensions, and a cube has 3. So when someone asks what is the area of a square with side lengths of 5, it would be 5 x 5, or the volume of a cube with the same side length would be 5 x 5 x 5.

So taking this shorthand 2^3, and converting it into the full “simple math” equation it represents would be: 2 x 2 x 2.

The other main thing about complicated math is that there is an agreed-upon order in which we write math.

If you haven’t gotten that far in math class, don’t worry about it yet. The whole point of learning math is that it is best to learn it in the correct order. Generally, anyone struggling with math has accidentally skipped a step along the way of learning it. All the future things you learn are dependent on knowing the previous foundational knowledge.

So anyway, long story short.

This is saying: 45 x 45 = 2025 And that the result of 1 x 1 x 1 added to the result of 2 x 2 x 2 added to the result of 3 x 3 x 3 added to the results of 4 x 4 x 4 added to the results of 5 x 5 x 5 added to the results of 6 x 6 x 6 added to the results of 7 x 7 x 7 added to the results of 8 x 8 x 8 added to the results of 9 x 9 x 9 would be 2025.

And now you can see why they developed shorthand.