In the same way you can look an expression like 3 x (3/4) as multiplying 3 by 3 and then dividing that number by 4, you can look at an expression like [tex] 3^{3/4} [/tex] as taking 3 to the 3rd power and then finding the 4th root of that number; in other words, [tex] \sqrt[4]{3^3} [/tex].
By that same logic, [tex] a^{5/7} [/tex] could be written as the 7th root of a to the 5th, or [tex] \sqrt[7]{a^5} [/tex]
