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Use your brain...
- Thread starter kyredneck
- Start date
I come up with 79, we're both wrong according to PEMDAS - order of operations.
Waiting for more brains to participate.
CORRECTION - you're right @JonC, it's 104. More:
- The post challenges users to solve "50 + 50 - 25 × 0 + 2 + 2" using mental math, relying on the order of operations (PEMDAS: Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication/Division, Addition/Subtraction), which dictates multiplication (25 × 0 = 0) occurs before addition, yielding 104 as the correct answer, a fact supported by educational resources like the 2023 doyouremember.com analysis.
- Historical debates, such as the 1986 CSMonitor.com article on calculator use in schools, highlight a divide among educators, with some arguing mental math skills—like solving this problem—decline with over-reliance on technology, a concern backed by studies showing mixed long-term effects on mathematical fluency.
- The variety of answers (4, 79, 104) in replies reflects confusion over PEMDAS, with some users misapplying the order, a common error noted in order-of-operations research, suggesting the post tests not just math skills but also public understanding of standardized rules.
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...it was too late for me when I posted this last night.
I'm surprised I got it right. I just woke up....won't say where I was sitting.
Had -25x0 been in parenthesis (-25x0) I would have gotten it correct. I wasn't aware that in an equation such as this multiplication is done before addition.
Carry on with what you're doing...
"50 + 50 - 25 × 0 + 2 + 2"
50+50 = 100; -25 = 75; 75 x 0 = 0; 0 +2 = 2; 2 + 2 = 4!
50+50 = 100; -25 = 75; 75 x 0 = 0; 0 +2 = 2; 2 + 2 = 4!
This is what Grok, AI on X, says:
- The post challenges users to solve "50 + 50 - 25 × 0 + 2 + 2 =" using mental math, highlighting the importance of order of operations (PEMDAS: Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication/Division, Addition/Subtraction), where the correct answer is 104 due to multiplication (25 × 0 = 0) being calculated before addition/subtraction.
- A 2016 study from ResearchGate on the "calculator debate" suggests calculator use might hinder mastery of mental arithmetic skills, supporting the post's call to "use your brain," though it notes positive performance links with calculators in large-scale assessments, indicating a nuanced educational trade-off.
- Responses on X reveal a split, with some users (e.g., initially calculating 4) misunderstanding order of operations, reflecting a broader 2023 National Assessment of Educational Progress finding that only 26% of U.S. eighth-graders were proficient in math, underscoring ongoing challenges in foundational arithmetic skills.
I'd failed the test!