The ^ symbol means exponent. We have 2 as the base and 5 as the exponent. You might write it like this [tex]2^5[/tex] though 2^5 is more common with computers and keyboards.
Using your calculator, you should find that 2^5 = 2*2*2*2*2 = 32. We have five copies of the base 2 multiplied together.
You can use logs to determine how to write 32 as a base 2. You would do so like this
log(32)/log(2) = 5
it doesn't matter which base log you use. This is through the change of base formula.
