midnight rain

That's incorrect. The answer to that is still 9. The way you wrote it hides the multiplication sign making it appear as if you'd multiply the denominator by (1+3). But in actuality, you still multiply the 6 by (1+3)

It looks easier if you actually keep the multiplication sign in: 6/2*(1+2) and 6/2(1+2) are the same thing. And the answer to both is 9.

midnight rain

So you want people to just throw out well established math principles because they "feel" like it? Bottom line, you do it the way oojay did it and you wouldn't be taken seriously in the math community, you'd get the question wrong on a test, etc. Because the math community abides by some universal guidelines where parentheses are assumed, or not assumed depending on the situation. And it's a matter of learning when they're necessary

Solving it oojay's way is the equivalent of putting a period in the middle of a sentence; no one's stopping you from doing it. But the rules that govern basic math that were established to keep a standard would say it's incorrect. You don't get to choose how a problem's solved if it breaks the rules of math laid down just because you feel like it. Unless you want the wrong answer, of course.

MoonlitSunshine

Do you want to reference a paper or some sort of quote from "The mathematical community" to back up these wild, wild statements?

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Janszoon

But if there's an established way it's handled, as there appears to be, what does it matter how someone feels about it?

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MoonlitSunshine

Because the "established way it's handled" isn't universally established. They've been doing polls on this recently, the answer given isn't universally equal. As I was saying earlier, you might as well say "Well, people know what I mean if I spell words incorrectly, so there's no point in correcting my spelling".

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TheBig3

Well, no one answer my question from earlier in the thread which was...

If we can agree that there isn't an inherent way to complete these problems and that the Order of Operations (OoO) is something to communicate more effectively as a globe, then why such flimsy guidelines sitting within the law?

It isn't logical to have order, where in there is disorder. Math is often seen as hard truths to achieve answers. But most of what we learn in math is philosophy. Its filled with theory and abstract constructs which we represent with numbers but you're not always told what you're multiplying or finding the radical root of.

All Oojay did, and myself since I got 1 also, was assign logical law to an area thats illogical. Why are certain ranks considered equal if there isn't an inherent way to find an answer, and we're making one up? If we're using PEMDAS, then it will determine rank where the system has failed.

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midnight rain

I don't think that's what EvilChuck is looking for, regardless of if it's being challenged. I think he just wanted the answer that's taught in school and practiced in practical life.

And it seems pretty established to me, that's why Google calculator knew what I meant even when I didn't add the parentheses. Just because people are doing the problem incorrectly doesn't mean we should accept that as an alternative answer.

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Candidate for most boring thread in the history of MusicBanter?

EvilChuck

I'm not actually looking for the answer, as I said I'm certain the answer is 9. I just thought it was interesting that despite what should be simple mathematics it had spawned (and has again) a big debate, over what oojay said on the first page or so is '6th grade maths'.

I was taught BODMAS at school, others were taught PEMDAS. This is proof enough imo that the multiplication and division are interchangable, and all thats left is to say you should work from right to left and whatever comes forst is what you do first.

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