A friend posted a link to this on Facebook today. There were well over 2000 replies and I would say about 75% were wrong. Maybe more.
6-1x0+2/2 = ?
The funniest thing is how many people get the answer wrong and insist they are right even after someone explains it to them. If all those people were in the same place, there would have been a giant brawl.
(I answered 7, by the way)
Most responses to math problem posts on social media are downright depressing. The future for many, isn't bright.
...someone should come out with an app for that....:pinch:
:good:
I thought the app came out when humans did.... isn't it called a brain?:-P
(obviously many humans don't use that "app" though....:-$
Order of operations is supposed to be taught in pre-algebra at the latest. It is standard in algebraic calculators, Excel, Fortran, Basic, COBOL, etc. But students and their parents alike seem unable to comprehend it.
Here's one from Oswald Jacoby that I used to send to middle school math teachers:
My favorite orange weighs nine-tenths of its weight plus nine-tenths of a pound. How much does my favorite orange weigh?
Did you use algebra to solve it, or was the answer obvious from arithmetic?
I thought I'd worked it in my head, but the answer doesn't make practical sense.
Either I'm wrong, or this problem violates the idea that the student is supposed to recognize unreasonable answers and re-work the problem.
> I thought I'd worked it in my head, but the answer doesn't make practical sense.
>
> Either I'm wrong, or this problem violates the idea that the student is supposed to recognize unreasonable answers and re-work the problem.
6-1x0+2/2 = ?
6 - (1 x 0) + (2/2) = ?
6 - (0) + (1) = 7
I don't see how one could come up with any other answer...
You've never seen a nine pound orange?... lol
that's why it's his favorite... how many screw drivers could you make with that thing?/
The answer is found in ....
PEMDAS!
The answer is found in ....
(P)lease
(E)xcuse
(M)y
(D)ear
(A)unt
(S)ally
It's a very large orange for sure and Jacoby was a Columbia graduate, so the Orange in question is probably not an infant Syracuse fan, but you never know.
:good: :good: :good:
The answer is found in ....
BEDMAS!
Using algebra, I came up with 9 pounds. That's one big orange. Am I right?
After looking at it, it should have been obvious.
I didn't either until I saw it on FB. Now I'm losing my confidence in the human race.:excruciating:
The answer is found in ....
[sarcasm]And every Friday is POETS DAY[/sarcasm]
The answer is found in ....
I agree, but dozens of people said that and still got the wrong answer. I'm not sure how.
The answer is found in ....
My son, the MBA, reasoned that the nine-tenths of a pound must be one-tenth of the total weight, so the total weight must be 10*9/10 = 9 pounds.
His twin brother, the mechanical engineer, said that 9/10w + 9/10 = w, where w is the total weight of the orange. Solving the equation gives w = 9.
My favorite responses from middle school math teachers always began with, "First, you have to convert pounds to ounces." But, the vast majority of them got it right.
My favorite quote about such things came from the first community college math department head that I taught for. He had his doctorate in math from NC State University. His quote: "You can't turn a bad math student into a good one by giving him a calculator."
That may be true for technology solutions in other fields, too.
