[sfarrow3]

I stole this from another board and thought it would be fun. Apparently they got it from one of the facebook quizes!

The problem was:

6÷2(1+2)=?

What would your answer be?

I thought it was 1, but some people were saying 9.

[sweetliberty]

I was always taught "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" as a way to remember order of operations. That would mean multiplication would come before division and make the answer 1. However, I put it into my old TI-83 and it said the answer was 9. I looked it up on google and found this wiki article about it:

Order of operations - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Apparently multiplication and division are of equal precedence so you go in order of which happens first in the equation. The answer is 9.

[Ally-Mac]

9

[sfarrow3]

HAHA ok! yes I just googled it and asked a few people around the office. It is PEMDAS!!! so 9 is the right answer!

I'm so glad my oldest is 4 and i don't have to deal with this right now!

Im horrible at math so I had no CLUE!! Im NOT looking forward to the girls being in school and needing help with math.

[Daffodil]

LOL I'm terrible at math too...I would have said 1!

[dinamommy]

Don't you do what's in parenthesis first? That's how I came up with 9 but I don't even know if that's the real rule. Haha! I'm terrible @ math.

[Lilly Bella]

this has been going around for awhile...but with a different set of numbers. ‎
48 / 2(9+3)= 2 or 288.

my answer is 1 for yours and 2 for mine. put in x for a number and solve for x to check.

[mommytokem]

I'm terrible at math too, good thing dh is good at it he can help ds when he gets to the harder stuff.

[Daffodil]

This is why I could never homeschool!

[Hollybear]

Originally Posted by Daffodil

This is why I could never homeschool!

LMAO! I knew the mnemonic but the first time I did it I thought "1"? LOL

[AndiNW]

When I quickly looked at it, I thought 1. But when I saw 9 as the answer I see why.

6÷2(1+2)
= 6÷2 x (1+2)
= 6÷2 x 3
= 3 x 3
= 9

That's a good one! I teach math and I'll being use it when I go back to work. Even though you do the brackets first, when you drop them it becomes multiplication and like Lisa said, multiplication and division you do whatever comes first.

[Lilly Bella]

but when you plug in x and try solving for it, the answer changes and it's 1.

x÷2(1+2)=1
x÷2(3)=1
x÷6=1
x=1x6
x=6

x÷2(1+2)=9
x÷2(3)=9
x÷6=9
x=9x6
x=54

[AndiNW]

I could be wrong, but when I solve for x, I get x=6
It's the same as:

x/2(1+2) = 9
x/2(3) = 9
x/2 = 9/3
x/2 = 3
x = 3x2
x = 6

Not sure if mine makes sense, but I like to think of division in fraction form. Like I said, I really like this question, it would make an excellent class discussion!

[Lilly Bella]

no i get it! i wish you were here at my house when zach and i were having this argument because i was on your side and he somehow switched me by explaining and showing me things. of course i can't remember now i heart math.

let's put the x in a different place 6/2(1+x)=1 so that would be 6/2=1/(1+x), 3=1(1+x), 3/1=1+x, 2=x

hahahahaha omg did i even do that right? my brain is such mush

This is why I majored in English. I need a nap just from reading this thread.

Kristen, you're making my head spin LOL

[sfarrow3]

Kristen hahaha omg! Funny!

[starrsgirl]

I heart math too but I don't follow how solving for X solves anything. Because, you can get 9 if you do the division before the multiplication too.....so.....?? (I have never really seen this solving for X business to "check"). Interesting. I took a ton of Calc in college...I regret not sticking with it and doing something useful, haha.