After the failure to show the poll in the other thread, I'll try again.

What is the answer to the above maths question? It came up earlier this evening and ended up with 6 at 6 and 3 at 5.

I just wondered what other people thought?

Cheers

Andrew

Well it is the Off Topic Forum!

Its fish

Is this like those weird facebook groups that put up maths questions to display how some people are utterly incapable of performing the most basic mathematical functions?

I think he wants to prove that he is smart then us at 2nd grade math

No, just to figure out the different take on this question. When I was at school the answer was 5 because the multiplication took precendence over the addition, but now schools are teaching that precedence is taken from the left, ie the addition comes first so the answer is 6.

Just wondered what everyone else thought?

Cheers

Andrew

In America they don't teach that

AndrewC wrote:No, just to figure out the different take on this question. When I was at school the answer was 5 because the multiplication took precendence over the addition, but now schools are teaching that precedence is taken from the left, ie the addition comes first so the answer is 6.
Just wondered what everyone else thought?

Cheers

Andrew

Wait, some schools in NZ are overthrowing the globally and mathematically accepted order of operations? On what basis? I haven't heard of any changes in the maths world.

They're just plain teaching it wrong, and those teachers (or those who came up with the idea) should be fired, because what they're planting in the heads of our next generation is absolute BS.

So this is how china is beating us in math, tehy got Tzeentch to change the math in their favor!

Avatar 720 wrote:Wait, some schools in NZ are overthrowing the globally and mathematically accepted order of operations? On what basis? I haven't heard of any changes in the maths world.

They're just plain teaching it wrong, and those teachers (or those who came up with the idea) should be fired, because what they're planting in the heads of our next generation is absolute BS.

Geography as well That's a Falkland Isles flag!

Cheers

Andrew

AndrewC wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:Wait, some schools in NZ are overthrowing the globally and mathematically accepted order of operations? On what basis? I haven't heard of any changes in the maths world.

They're just plain teaching it wrong, and those teachers (or those who came up with the idea) should be fired, because what they're planting in the heads of our next generation is absolute BS.

Geography as well That's a Falkland Isles flag!

Cheers

Andrew

Looks NZ from a distance. I blame Hitler.

How dare they change the "Please Bob Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" approach to math!

AndrewC wrote:now schools are teaching that precedence is taken from the left, ie the addition comes first so the answer is 6.
Cheers

Andrew

Are you serious? This fundamentally changes maths. This is several orders of magnitude worse than teachers allowing phonetic spelling.

Well they say that Pluto isn't a planet anymore, and Tatooine now exists. Then there's the triceratops issue, the world of hard sciences is changing.

halonachos wrote:Well they say that Pluto isn't a planet anymore, and Tatooine now exists. Then there's the triceratops issue, the world of hard sciences is changing.

Yes, but those aren't real things that matter. We use math to build things. If the math is wrong those things may fall down. Pluto's status as a planet will not affect the structural integrity of a bridge.

halonachos wrote:Well they say that Pluto isn't a planet anymore, and Tatooine now exists. Then there's the triceratops issue, the world of hard sciences is changing.

The triceratops thing isn't an "issue" or even a change, in my opinion. Dinosaurs being reclassified based upon improved understanding of the fossil record has been an integral part of paleontology since the very beginning and will continue to do so; ask any kid who knew what a "brontosaurus" was.

2 people dont know proper math. you do all the * and / 1st, THEN you do + and -.

That poll makes me sad.

Looking online it seems that PEMDAS should still be in effect. I didn't see much (though admittedly I didn't look very hard) to say that things were changing.

feeder wrote:

halonachos wrote:Well they say that Pluto isn't a planet anymore, and Tatooine now exists. Then there's the triceratops issue, the world of hard sciences is changing.

Yes, but those aren't real things that matter. We use math to build things. If the math is wrong those things may fall down. Pluto's status as a planet will not affect the structural integrity of a bridge.

Pluto could get angry and smash the bridge in revenge.

halonachos wrote:

feeder wrote:

halonachos wrote:Well they say that Pluto isn't a planet anymore, and Tatooine now exists. Then there's the triceratops issue, the world of hard sciences is changing.

Yes, but those aren't real things that matter. We use math to build things. If the math is wrong those things may fall down. Pluto's status as a planet will not affect the structural integrity of a bridge.

Pluto could get angry and smash the bridge in revenge.

This is also true...

Ahtman wrote:Looking online it seems that PEMDAS should still be in effect. I didn't see much (though admittedly I didn't look very hard) to say that things were changing.

I couldn't find anything either, although it may have been a half-hearted effort on my part; but then again, one would expect such a large change in the world of maths to have made some headlines if it had happened, so the lack of evidence on the first few pages of Google speaks volumes about how likely (or rather, unlikely) this is to have changed.

I've also got several close friends who have studied high level mathematics and haven't encountered anything to say there's been a change.

Why kids are being taught basic maths differently (and incorrectly when applied to the current world of mathematics) is beyond me.

I cry whenever I see these type of questions of Facebook, especially when the equation involves a zero. Although the way some people try to rationalise their stupidity is usually quite entertaining.

It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

I'm not all that great at math and haven't taken a math class in something like six years, but even I remember PEMDAS:

1+2x2=5. if it was (1+2)2 THEN the correct answer would be 6. C'mon, people, this is elementary school stuff.

^^ Exactly. The answer to the OPs question is 5, if they wanted the answer to be 6 you'd need brackets.

If there is some sort of hair-brained idea that math should be done left to right instead of BEDMAS (Brackets, exponents, division, multiplication, addition, subtraction), then wouldn't the bracket become obsolete?

Who is the fool teaching that operations are done from left to right? We must stop this heresy!

ask any kid who knew what a "brontosaurus" was

*raises hand* oo oo oo I know the answer sir!!
Emily, Charlotte or Anne after 15 lagers and a Vindaloo!

Most likely Emily. She always was a bugger for a beer and a balti

Where did the term PEDMAS come from? I don't remember it when I was going to school although I understand the order of operations... we just didn't flaunt around an acronym for it.

don't know about PEDMAS, but I used BIDMAS standing for

Brackets
Indices
Division
Multiplication
Addition
Subtraction

P must be for Parentheses (ie brackets)
E (after a google) must be for Exponentiation (ie Indices)

The act of raising a number to a power

In ireland we have BOMBdas

Brackets
Of (division)
Multiplication
Division
Addition
Subtraction



Automatically Appended Next Post:
PS Brackets would make it more clear

I was taught BODMAS in school and that was 20 years ago or so.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Apparently, multiplication and division are of equal precedence which I never knew until now.

We couldn't afford acronyms when I were a lad
No wonder I was so crap at maths

Yeah, it doesn't really matter which order you do multiplication or division in, it still works. Many grueling years of additional maths taught me that.

Also, it's 5.

It's 5 and anyone who tells you otherwise should be burnt as a heratic.

But then so should anyone who fails to use brackets except to make a point about thw dangers of not using them.

So should every teacher who talks about an angle measurer rather than a protractor, or still teaches i before e.

Don't even get me started on the wrongness of GCSE chemistry. The lies to children they tell.

I have just learnt that everything I learnt in IGCSE chem is a lie.

It hurt so much.

It gets worse. I started my degree and one of the first things the semiconductors lectures said was "you know how when they told you at alevel that everything you were told at gcse was a good model but wrong? Well it's the same now, but even this is wrong but it works for now"

Finding out the concept of electrons flying round a nuclius at set levels, or even at all, is most disconcerting.

And here I was thinking knowing 1s2 2s2 2p6 made me smart.

Five.

Multiply first, then add/subtract. Duh?

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:We couldn't afford acronyms when I were a lad
No wonder I was so crap at maths

I didn't get any fancy acronyms either, just had to remember the order without it.

5

Because the party says so.

Did anyone else get 7?


Seriously though, if someone is teaching this left to right and they are a teacher, they need to be fired.

Because if it left to right, then you can take the same operations and reverse them giving two different answers.


1+2*2=?

2*2+1=?

The whole PEMDAS is there to make sure that doesn't happen. Of course from the looks of it, this is pretty much known in this thread. Where the hell are they teaching this wrong anyway?

I honestly doubt this is the new "norm" for teaching. My mother is a middle school math teacher, and if this was a change made to the curriculum I'd have heard her complain about it by now.

What she has complained about before is nowadays her kids can't seem to do simple math without a calculator. Like multiplying simple fractions. There's definitely an increase in the amount of spoon-feeding that's going on with today's generation compared to when I was in school, or when my parents were.

12 people disgust me!


seriously though, i hate math,and suck at it,and even i know this. are 12 people just idiots,or are there really teachers out the who teach something so important wrong?

The people who answered 6 make me sad...

I learned BEDMAS (Brackets, exponents, division/mulitplication, addition/subtraction).

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

18% of the respondents to this poll shouldn't have passed 4th grade Algebra.

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

Tyyr wrote:18% of the respondents to this poll shouldn't have passed 4th grade Algebra.

I've never heard of 9 year olds taking Algebra, in the US.

Yeah, it's a sad state of affairs.

Was the answer 5?
I've had quite a few to drink

If you had two beers, then doubled the amount of beers you had, then had one more beer, how many beers have you had?

Melissia wrote:If you had two beers, then doubled the amount of beers you had, then had one more beer, how many beers have you had?

Enough to have fun?

If you had two beers, then doubled the amount of beers you had, then had one more beer, how many beers have you had?

Hahahahah Mel.

Ok Im close, but what if one or two cheeky Greygoose infiltrated for 1-2 more rounds


Automatically Appended Next Post:
We'd be 7-2 right?

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

Cheesecat wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

bed moss? thats unhealthy.

lord commissar klimino wrote:

Cheesecat wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

bed moss? thats unhealthy.

That's a shocking joke...
An affront to all and any humour that has ever existed... ever.

purplefood wrote:

lord commissar klimino wrote:

Cheesecat wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

bed moss? thats unhealthy.

That's a shocking joke...
An affront to all and any humour that has ever existed... ever.

it wasnt THAT bad. you want to see bad? do you? DO YOU?

lord commissar klimino wrote:

purplefood wrote:

lord commissar klimino wrote:

Cheesecat wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

bed moss? thats unhealthy.

That's a shocking joke...
An affront to all and any humour that has ever existed... ever.

it wasnt THAT bad. you want to see bad? do you? DO YOU?

It wasn't that bad. It was much much worse...

purplefood wrote:

lord commissar klimino wrote:

purplefood wrote:

lord commissar klimino wrote:

Cheesecat wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

bed moss? thats unhealthy.

That's a shocking joke...
An affront to all and any humour that has ever existed... ever.

it wasnt THAT bad. you want to see bad? do you? DO YOU?

It wasn't that bad. It was much much worse...

The quote triangle grows... Muahaha....

Also, sweetie, you told a worse joke. Last time you said it, I the Fredricksons left.

Chowderhead wrote:

purplefood wrote:

lord commissar klimino wrote:

purplefood wrote:

lord commissar klimino wrote:

Cheesecat wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Avatar 720 wrote:

halonachos wrote:

Doctadeth wrote:It's five, not six.

Regardless of maths formula *moving on* essentially, its that this works. I have always been taught, even in my advanced maths classes, that formula is done this way. Devision, Multiplication, then subtractions and finally additions. However, brackets also make a difference, but not in this!

PEMDAS

Parentheses, Brackets(if involved), Exponent, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction. Not Division and then multiplication.

Its usually remembered as "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "Please, Bob, Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally".

Divison and Multiplication are of equal precedence IIRC, so the order doesn't really matter.

No, the order matters, the order always matters! Its not PEMorDAorS or PEDMSA, its PEMDAS!

I'll see your PEMDAS and raise you both a BODMAS and a BIDMAS.

I was taught BEDMAS.

bed moss? thats unhealthy.

That's a shocking joke...
An affront to all and any humour that has ever existed... ever.

it wasnt THAT bad. you want to see bad? do you? DO YOU?

It wasn't that bad. It was much much worse...

The quote triangle grows... Muahaha....

Also, sweetie, you told a worse joke. Last time you said it, I the Fredricksons left.

Sorry honey but the Fredricksons are irksome. They practically sucked the humour out of the room.

Edited.

....f*k OFF rATTYU

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:P must be for Parentheses (ie brackets)
E (after a google) must be for Exponentiation (ie Indices)

The act of raising a number to a power

Exactly.

Parentheses
Exponents
Multiplication
Divide
Add
Subtract

We used the pneumonic device "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" and it's stuck with me since elementary school.

kronk wrote:

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:P must be for Parentheses (ie brackets)
E (after a google) must be for Exponentiation (ie Indices)

The act of raising a number to a power

Exactly.

Parentheses
Exponents
Multiplication
Divide
Add
Subtract

We used the pneumonic device "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" and it's stuck with me since elementary school.

Isn't it mnemonic?

It's actually pneumatic. They use a piston to pierce the student's skull to imprint "PEMDAS" directly upon the brain.

Makes sense...
Especially considering 18 people don't seem to have a basic grasp on mathematics...

purplefood wrote:
Isn't it mnemonic?

Maybe. Dunno.

Good lord - don't quote the living hell out of stuff - please!

RatBot wrote:It's actually pneumatic. They use a piston to pierce the student's skull to imprint "PEMDAS" directly upon the brain.

Back in my day we had hydraulic pistons. Damn kids don't know how easy they have it...

stop quoting stuff i dont know!

Embarrassingly, I put 6....then I remembered bedmas >_> So I say that mine should be 5 dammit!


But really, why the hell does the X have to be first?

5.

Seriously.

Please Excuse My Aunt Sally

This kind of thing is easy for many people to forget if they're not using math regularly. I know I use math every day thanks to my science courses (and minecraft + dwarf fortress...), myself...

I remember always being confused with the whole BEDMAS thing as a kid - especially when they told us that the division and multiplication could be switched, as well as the addition and subtraction. It wasn't until late in high school that I figured our why.

Is it possible that the OP is incorrect? The teachers could be saying, do the multiplication/division from left to right, or do the addition/subtraction from left to right. I was told something to that effect when I questioned the system. The reason? No reason, it just shuts the kid up, and won't make a difference.

Interesting to see the acronyms that different cultures / generations come up with - PEMDAS, BEDMAS, BIDMAS, BOMDAS, etc. I imagine it's geographical area, though, not really the decade. Perhaps the parentheses / brackets, what with computers becoming much more common in the last few decades. Programming (at least currently) depends heavily on the use of brackets, and it's less of a mouthful than parentheseseses.

Here, you use parentheses for the first level, then brackets for the second level.

For example, in solving functions:

A function of f(x)=7+u in an equation of (X+17)^2+2x+10=0 would basically result in an equation of: ([7+u]+17)^2+2(7+u)+10=0.

notice the position of the brackets in comparison to the parentheses.

lol, and this is the simple stuff. Yay math!

Melissia wrote:This kind of thing is easy for many people to forget if they're not using math regularly. I know I use math every day thanks to my science courses (and minecraft + dwarf fortress...), myself...

those are fun as hell!

Melissia wrote:Here, you use parentheses for the first level, then brackets for the second level.

For example, in solving functions:

A function of f(x)=7+u in an equation of (X+17)^2+2x+10=0 would basically result in an equation of: ([7+u]+17)^2+2(7+u)+10=0.

notice the position of the brackets in comparison to the parentheses.

lol, and this is the simple stuff. Yay math!

To be honest, we mostly call them brackets, even the parentheses. Perhaps they thought it was too much for us to wrap our tiny minds around. Obviously, brackets within brackets are done before brackets containing brackets. ({[Inception!]})

Depending on what kind of math you're doing, definite brackets (the {} brackets, IE, curly brackets) have different uses. Mostly I see it used to enclose and define sets.

It's five. Order of operations.

Parentheses
Exponents
Multiplication
Division
Addition
Subtraction

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

I'm begining to wonder if this is an example of "lies to kids".

That is, if they are being taught left to right to get them used to sequential calculations, get them happy and them hit them with the horrors that is BEDMAS!

Many thanks for the responses though!

Andrew

Kudos to anyone who gets this reference.

Accountancy joke!

Heh, there is a reason I never made it to college.

GalacticDefender wrote:

Kudos to anyone who gets this reference.

Reminds me of the episode of Fairly Odd Parents, where Crocker and Steven Hawking are going back and forth proving that 2+2=5 and 2+2=6....

Wait a minute, what the feth is this sh*t about Triceratops? What moron of a palaeontologist thought this up? Having seen both compared, there's nearly no evidence, and seems to be mostly conjecture. It's untrue unless the Triceratops suddenly adopts the proportional growth rate of a small rodent.

I said five, because I was taught BIMDAS, and to the best of my knowledge that's still what is being followed.

I don't really get the level of superiority in this thread though, from people who think BIMDAS or any other acronym like that is the way maths must be. If maths was taught left to right it wouldn't suddenly get dumber or less capable of describing anything. It'd still be maths, it's just the form of notation would change.

GalacticDefender wrote:

Kudos to anyone who gets this reference.

It's from 1984.

Or, possibly a Radiohead song. Though in that case it's more "two and two always makes fiiiiiiiiiive".

I blame the left for this.

sebster wrote: If maths was taught left to right it wouldn't suddenly get dumber or less capable of describing anything. It'd still be maths, it's just the form of notation would change.

Actually, it would make a lot of common thing harder to write down.

ab + cd would become ( ab ) + ( cd )

That might not seems like much, but when dealing with polynomials like

ax^3 + bx^2 + cx + d

it can be annoying.

Sums of product are really common, but products of sum are not that common.

mrondeau wrote:
Sums of product are really common, but products of sum are not that common.

That's why its only 'sum' instead of 'all'.

I can understand the average forum goer missing the question: d f(x) / dy 5x^2 + x - 7 = ?

But to miss: 1 + 2 * 2 = ?



FYI: d f(x) / dy 5x^2 + x - 7 = 10x + 1

1 + 2 * 2 = 5

Zyllos wrote:I can understand the average forum goer missing the question: d f(x) / dy 5x^2 + x - 7 = ?

But to miss: 1 + 2 * 2 = ?



FYI: d f(x) / dy 5x^2 + x - 7 = 10x + 1

1 + 2 * 2 = 5

∫sinxcosx

corpsesarefun wrote:
∫sinxcosx

Oops, did derivative...you want anti-derivative...

I'm an Engineer, have been for a couple of years, I graduated from a well respected College in the area and have always enjoyed math. I have a brother who is considerably younger then me. One night he asked me for help doing his freshman high school math homework, I helped him we got through all of the problems he understood what he was tought and all was grand in the world. He gets the assignment back several days later only to find out he failed, he got none of the questions right. The teacher didn't provide her answers, so I go back over the work to try and find out where we went wrong. I did the problem using higher level math and still got the same answers. I finally emailed the problems off to a mathmatics professor I had in college that I'm friends with, he gets the same answers. Through my parents I arrange to have a meeting with this teacher so she could show me what we did wrong. It turned out that she didnt actually look at his work, she just compaired her answers to those on the paper.... Her answers were in decimals, my brothers were left in fractions...

Zyllos wrote:

corpsesarefun wrote:
∫sinxcosx

Oops, did derivative...you want anti-derivative...

It isn't too hard, I just felt this thread wasn't complete without some integrals.

AndrewC wrote:After the failure to show the poll in the other thread, I'll try again.

What is the answer to the above maths question? It came up earlier this evening and ended up with 6 at 6 and 3 at 5.

I just wondered what other people thought?

Cheers

Andrew

Well it is the Off Topic Forum!

The only proper response from a lawyer is: what number do you want it to be?

corpsesarefun wrote:∫sinxcosxdy

Since there's no variable of integration, I'm going to assume this one.

So the answer is sinxcosx.

biccat wrote:

corpsesarefun wrote:∫sinxcosxdy

Since there's no variable of integration, I'm going to assume this one.

So the answer is sinxcosx.

LOL, thats cheating!

biccat wrote:

corpsesarefun wrote:∫sinxcosxdy

Since there's no variable of integration, I'm going to assume this one.

So the answer is sinxcosx.

Quiet you, standard notation is for fools.

GalacticDefender wrote:

Kudos to anyone who gets this reference.

Only if you work to 1 significant figure.

I'd love to see what these teachers would do with 1 2 2 * +

(appologies if that is wrong. My rpn is not very good).

sebster wrote:

GalacticDefender wrote:

Kudos to anyone who gets this reference.

It's from 1984.

Or, possibly a Radiohead song. Though in that case it's more "two and two always makes fiiiiiiiiiive".

Or a Radiohead song that was taken from an album inspired by Nineteen Eighty Four.... ^^

Or a radiohead song that is very, very good.

Yes, it is from 1984.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Never heard the radiohead song.

mrondeau wrote:Actually, it would make a lot of common thing harder to write down.

Possibly, I don't really work with higher math.

I don't really see the problem with adding more brackets, even if they're redundant I like having them in there as it adds clarity that I find I have to tease out otherwise. Then again, you should see my excel formulas, those things have stupid numbers of brackets in them.

I can't believe people can get this question wrong...

Wow, even with PEMDAS in my head I still managed to screw that up. Stupid aunt sally, she's always plotting to undermine me.

I'm not going to lie...I answered "6"...

After seeing the results I remembered "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally"...and think, I used to rock at Math...and it's only been three years since college!

biccat wrote:

corpsesarefun wrote:∫sinxcosxdy

Since there's no variable of integration, I'm going to assume this one.

So the answer is sinxcosx.

+C

Nightwatch wrote:I remember always being confused with the whole BEDMAS thing as a kid - especially when they told us that the division and multiplication could be switched, as well as the addition and subtraction. It wasn't until late in high school that I figured our why.

Is it possible that the OP is incorrect? The teachers could be saying, do the multiplication/division from left to right, or do the addition/subtraction from left to right. I was told something to that effect when I questioned the system. The reason? No reason, it just shuts the kid up, and won't make a difference.

Interesting to see the acronyms that different cultures / generations come up with - PEMDAS, BEDMAS, BIDMAS, BOMDAS, etc. I imagine it's geographical area, though, not really the decade. Perhaps the parentheses / brackets, what with computers becoming much more common in the last few decades. Programming (at least currently) depends heavily on the use of brackets, and it's less of a mouthful than parentheseseses.

I'm finding it strange reading all these people who learned those acronyms for much the same reason - they seem to imply that multiplication must be done before division, and addition before subtraction, which is wrong.
I was taught the acronym BEMA: Brackets, Exponents, Multiplication (and division) Addition (and subtraction), which emphasizes that multiplication and division have the same precedence (and same with addition and subtraction), due to really being the same operations (division is just multiplication by the reciprocal, subtraction is just the addition of the negative).

I am wondering how many people would get this wrong:
6 - 7 + 3 = ?
The correct answer is 2, but I get the impression a lot of people following the longer acronyms which separate addition and subtraction would mistakenly solve it as 6 - 10 = -4

corpsesarefun wrote:

Zyllos wrote:I can understand the average forum goer missing the question: d f(x) / dy 5x^2 + x - 7 = ?

But to miss: 1 + 2 * 2 = ?



FYI: d f(x) / dy 5x^2 + x - 7 = 10x + 1

1 + 2 * 2 = 5

∫sinxcosx

Oh u-substitution, the days when you solved so many things.