Question

what is the ricea + b
$y + x$
​

Answer 1

This expression is just an example, of course.

My question is: should one always specify the quantity being exponentiated by surrounding it with braces, or is it acceptable to drop those braces? (Cases in which \left(...\right) are used lie outside the scope of my question.)

It seems to me that one should write {(x+y)}^2 but I do see (x+y)^2 a lot...

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