Skip to content

A fake Facebook event disguised as a math problem has been one of its top posts for 6 months

Technology
168 71 34
  • THEY took the position we should have brackets defining the order in every single equation or otherwise have them as undefined TODAY

    Who's this mysterious "THEY" you are referring to, because I can assure you that the history of Maths tells you that is wrong. e.g. look in Cajori and you'll find the order of operations rules are at least 2 centuries older than the use of Brackets in Maths.,

    It doesn’t matter when they were invented

    The rules haven't changed since then.

    They are the one arguing it SHOULD BE

    ...and watch Physicists and Mathematicians promptly run out of room on blackboards if they did.

    You’re getting caught up in the semantics of the wording

    No, you're making up things that never happened.

    they’re saying brackets were always around and we chose left to right to avoid bracket mess

    and that's wrong. Left to right was around before Brackets were.

    we chose and continue to choose to keep using the left to right convention over brackets everywhere

    and you're wrong, because that choice was made before we'd even started using Brackets in Maths, by at least a couple of centuries.

    it would be unnecessary and make things more cluttered

    They've always been un-necessary, unless you want to deviate from the normal order of operations.

    They could have decided we should use them in every equation for absolute clarity of order

    But they didn't, because we already had clarity over order, and had done for several centuries.

    Saying we should not do that based on tradition alone is a bad reason.

    Got nothing to do with tradition. Got no idea where you got that idea from.

    Things DO change.

    The order of operations rules don't, and the last change to the notation was in the 19th Century.

    I could go on

    and you'd still be wrong. You're heading off into completely unrelated topics now.

    you should argue more than “it’s tradition” or “we’ve done fine without it so far”

    I never said either of those things.

    Because they did fine with many things in mathematics until they decided they needed to change or expand it

    And they changed the meaning of the Division symbol sometime in the 19th Century or earlier, and everything has been settled for centuries now.

    The "mysterious" they is HerelAm, the person I was replying to you ninny.

  • Thank you very much for the detailed response! Very informative and interesting.

    No worries 🙂

  • The "mysterious" they is HerelAm, the person I was replying to you ninny.

    The “mysterious” they is HerelAm, the person I was replying to you ninny

    The person who couldn't even manage to get 10-1+1 correct when doing addition first 😂

  • Actually, it is. Written by a PhD and used in a college course.

    Yeah there's an issue with them having forgotten the basic rules, since they don't actually teach them (except in a remedial way). Why do you think I keep trying to bring you back to actual Maths textbooks?

    May want to work on your own reading comprehension.

    Nope. It's still not a textbook. Sounds more like a higher education version of Wikipedia.

    The facts disagree

    With you, yes.

    it doesn’t change the underlying issue that it’s defined by man.

    The notation is, the rules aren't.

    In the absence of all your books (which you clearly don’t understand anyway based on our discussion of unary vs binary)

    Says person who doesn't understand the difference between unary and binary. Apparently EVERYTHING is binary according to you (and your website). 😂

    order of operations only exists because we all agree to it

    It exists whether we agree with it or not. Don't obey it, get wrong answers.

    Nope. It's still not a textbook. Sounds more like a higher education version of Wikipedia.

    It is though. Here's a link to buy a printed copy: https://libretexts.org/bookstore/order?math-7309

    You keep mentioning textbooks but haven't actually shown any that support you. I have. I'll trust the PhD teaching a university course on the subject over the nobody on the internet who just keeps saying "trust me bro" and then being condescending while also being embarrassingly wrong.

    And because I can't help it, I'll also trust Wolfram over you: Examples of binary operation on A from A×A to A include addition (+), subtraction (-), multiplication (×) and division (÷). Here, you can buy a copy of this too: https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1420072218/weisstein-20

    Says person who doesn't understand the difference between unary and binary.

    Talking about yourself in the third person is weird. Even your nonsense about a silent "+" is really just leaving off the leading 0 in the equation 0+2. Because addition is a binary operator.

    Apparently EVERYTHING is binary according to you (and your website). 😂

    Only the ones that operate on two inputs. Some examples of unary operators are factorial, absolute value, and trig functions. The laughing face when you make a fool of yourself isn't really as effective as you think it is.

    But we're getting off topic again. I can't keep trying to explain the same thing to you, so I would say this has been fun, but it's been more like talking to an unusually obnoxious brick wall. Next time you want to engage with someone try being less of a prick, or at least less wrong. You're not nearly as smart as you seem to think you are.

  • Nope. It's still not a textbook. Sounds more like a higher education version of Wikipedia.

    It is though. Here's a link to buy a printed copy: https://libretexts.org/bookstore/order?math-7309

    You keep mentioning textbooks but haven't actually shown any that support you. I have. I'll trust the PhD teaching a university course on the subject over the nobody on the internet who just keeps saying "trust me bro" and then being condescending while also being embarrassingly wrong.

    And because I can't help it, I'll also trust Wolfram over you: Examples of binary operation on A from A×A to A include addition (+), subtraction (-), multiplication (×) and division (÷). Here, you can buy a copy of this too: https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1420072218/weisstein-20

    Says person who doesn't understand the difference between unary and binary.

    Talking about yourself in the third person is weird. Even your nonsense about a silent "+" is really just leaving off the leading 0 in the equation 0+2. Because addition is a binary operator.

    Apparently EVERYTHING is binary according to you (and your website). 😂

    Only the ones that operate on two inputs. Some examples of unary operators are factorial, absolute value, and trig functions. The laughing face when you make a fool of yourself isn't really as effective as you think it is.

    But we're getting off topic again. I can't keep trying to explain the same thing to you, so I would say this has been fun, but it's been more like talking to an unusually obnoxious brick wall. Next time you want to engage with someone try being less of a prick, or at least less wrong. You're not nearly as smart as you seem to think you are.

    It is though. Here’s a link to buy a printed copy:

    BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! They print it out when someone places an order! 😂

    You keep mentioning textbooks but haven’t actually shown any that support you. I have

    No you haven't. You've shown 2 websites, both updated by random people.

    I’ll trust the PhD teaching a university course on the subject

    I already pointed out to you that they DON'T teach order of operations at University. It's taught in high school. Dude on page you referred to was teaching Set theory, not order of operations.

    over the nobody on the internet

    Don't know who you're referring to. I'm a high school Maths teacher, hence the dozens of textbooks on the topic.

    Talking about yourself in the third person is weird

    Proves I'm not weird then doesn't it.

    Even your nonsense about a silent “+”

    You call what's in textbooks nonsense? That explains a lot! 😂

    is really just leaving off the leading 0 in the equation 0+2

    And yet the textbook says nothing of the kind. If I had 2+3, which is really +2+3 (see above textbook), do I, according to you, have to write 0+2+0+3? Enquiring minds want to know. And do I have to put another plus in front of the zero, as per the textbook, +0+2+0+3

    Because addition is a binary operator

    No it isn't 😂

    Only the ones that operate on two inputs.

    Now you're getting it. Multiply and divide take 2 inputs, add and subtract take 1.

    Some examples of unary operators are factorial, absolute value, and trig functions.

    Actually none of those are operators. The first 2 are grouping symbols (like brackets, exponents, and vinculums), the last is a function (it was right there in the name). The only unary operators are plus and minus.

    I can’t keep trying to explain the same thing to you

    You very nearly got it that time though! 😂

    at least less wrong

    Again, it's not me who's wrong.

  • It is though. Here’s a link to buy a printed copy:

    BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! They print it out when someone places an order! 😂

    You keep mentioning textbooks but haven’t actually shown any that support you. I have

    No you haven't. You've shown 2 websites, both updated by random people.

    I’ll trust the PhD teaching a university course on the subject

    I already pointed out to you that they DON'T teach order of operations at University. It's taught in high school. Dude on page you referred to was teaching Set theory, not order of operations.

    over the nobody on the internet

    Don't know who you're referring to. I'm a high school Maths teacher, hence the dozens of textbooks on the topic.

    Talking about yourself in the third person is weird

    Proves I'm not weird then doesn't it.

    Even your nonsense about a silent “+”

    You call what's in textbooks nonsense? That explains a lot! 😂

    is really just leaving off the leading 0 in the equation 0+2

    And yet the textbook says nothing of the kind. If I had 2+3, which is really +2+3 (see above textbook), do I, according to you, have to write 0+2+0+3? Enquiring minds want to know. And do I have to put another plus in front of the zero, as per the textbook, +0+2+0+3

    Because addition is a binary operator

    No it isn't 😂

    Only the ones that operate on two inputs.

    Now you're getting it. Multiply and divide take 2 inputs, add and subtract take 1.

    Some examples of unary operators are factorial, absolute value, and trig functions.

    Actually none of those are operators. The first 2 are grouping symbols (like brackets, exponents, and vinculums), the last is a function (it was right there in the name). The only unary operators are plus and minus.

    I can’t keep trying to explain the same thing to you

    You very nearly got it that time though! 😂

    at least less wrong

    Again, it's not me who's wrong.

    They print it out when someone places an order! 😂

    Welcome to the 21st century. We have this thing called the internet so people can share information without killing trees. It's the resource material for a college course. That's like the definition of a text book without costing the students a month's rent.

    random people.

    One is a PhD teaching a college course on the subject, the other is Wolfram. Neither of those are "random people" and their credentials beat "claims to be a high school math teacher but had trouble counting to 2" pretty soundly.

    I already pointed out to you that they DON'T teach order of operations at University. It's taught in high school. Dude on page you referred to was teaching Set theory, not order of operations.

    This portion of the discussion wasn't about order of operations, it was about the number of inputs an operator (+, and - in this case) has. Try to keep up.

    Don't know who you're referring to. I'm a high school Maths teacher, hence the dozens of textbooks on the topic.

    Dear God if that's true I feel sorry for your students and embarrassed for whatever school is paying you. But this is the internet and with any luck that's a flat out lie. At least your repeated use of the plural maths means you're not anywhere near my kids. Also, has the line "I'm a high school math teacher" ever impressed anyone?

    And yet the textbook says nothing of the kind. If I had 2+3, which is really +2+3..

    Oh, I see the problem. We're back to reading comprehension. That section you highlighted specifically refers to when those symbols are being used as a "sign of the quality" of the number it's referring to, not when it's being used to indicate an operation like addition or subtraction. Hopefully that clears it up. This is ignoring the fact that a random screen shot could be anything. For all I know you wrote that yourself.

    do I, according to you, have to write 0+2+0+3

    No. You also don't need to write +2+3 because the first "+" isn't an operator. It's, as your own picture says, a sign of the quality of 2.

    Now you're getting it. Multiply and divide take 2 inputs, add and subtract take 1.

    I would love to know how you get to a sum or difference with only one input. Here, I'll try to spell it out using your own example so that even you can understand.

    The inputs to 2 + 3 = 5 are 2 and 3. Let's count them together. 2 is the first, and 3 is the second. 1, 2. Two inputs for addition. Did you get it this time? Was that too fast? You can go back and read it again if you need to

    Actually none of those are operators. The first 2 are grouping symbols

    Fine, operation then. The fact that you think "!" is the same thing as brackets doesn't do anything to help your bona fides though. And I don't have the energy to write up a word doc and screen shot it since that's apparently what it takes for you to consider something valid.

    Maybe you're just being weirdly pedantic about operator vs operation. Which would be a strange hill to die on since the original topic was operations.

    You very nearly got it that time though! 😂

    If by "it" you mean through your thick skull, then you're more optimistic than I am. Keep laughing though, you just look dumber every time.

    Again, it's not me who's wrong.

    Again, according to literally everyone, it is. I could keep providing sources, but I still don't have the time to screen shot some random crap with no supporting evidence. And as much as I enjoy dunking on dipshits, I've got other things to do.

  • They print it out when someone places an order! 😂

    Welcome to the 21st century. We have this thing called the internet so people can share information without killing trees. It's the resource material for a college course. That's like the definition of a text book without costing the students a month's rent.

    random people.

    One is a PhD teaching a college course on the subject, the other is Wolfram. Neither of those are "random people" and their credentials beat "claims to be a high school math teacher but had trouble counting to 2" pretty soundly.

    I already pointed out to you that they DON'T teach order of operations at University. It's taught in high school. Dude on page you referred to was teaching Set theory, not order of operations.

    This portion of the discussion wasn't about order of operations, it was about the number of inputs an operator (+, and - in this case) has. Try to keep up.

    Don't know who you're referring to. I'm a high school Maths teacher, hence the dozens of textbooks on the topic.

    Dear God if that's true I feel sorry for your students and embarrassed for whatever school is paying you. But this is the internet and with any luck that's a flat out lie. At least your repeated use of the plural maths means you're not anywhere near my kids. Also, has the line "I'm a high school math teacher" ever impressed anyone?

    And yet the textbook says nothing of the kind. If I had 2+3, which is really +2+3..

    Oh, I see the problem. We're back to reading comprehension. That section you highlighted specifically refers to when those symbols are being used as a "sign of the quality" of the number it's referring to, not when it's being used to indicate an operation like addition or subtraction. Hopefully that clears it up. This is ignoring the fact that a random screen shot could be anything. For all I know you wrote that yourself.

    do I, according to you, have to write 0+2+0+3

    No. You also don't need to write +2+3 because the first "+" isn't an operator. It's, as your own picture says, a sign of the quality of 2.

    Now you're getting it. Multiply and divide take 2 inputs, add and subtract take 1.

    I would love to know how you get to a sum or difference with only one input. Here, I'll try to spell it out using your own example so that even you can understand.

    The inputs to 2 + 3 = 5 are 2 and 3. Let's count them together. 2 is the first, and 3 is the second. 1, 2. Two inputs for addition. Did you get it this time? Was that too fast? You can go back and read it again if you need to

    Actually none of those are operators. The first 2 are grouping symbols

    Fine, operation then. The fact that you think "!" is the same thing as brackets doesn't do anything to help your bona fides though. And I don't have the energy to write up a word doc and screen shot it since that's apparently what it takes for you to consider something valid.

    Maybe you're just being weirdly pedantic about operator vs operation. Which would be a strange hill to die on since the original topic was operations.

    You very nearly got it that time though! 😂

    If by "it" you mean through your thick skull, then you're more optimistic than I am. Keep laughing though, you just look dumber every time.

    Again, it's not me who's wrong.

    Again, according to literally everyone, it is. I could keep providing sources, but I still don't have the time to screen shot some random crap with no supporting evidence. And as much as I enjoy dunking on dipshits, I've got other things to do.

    Welcome to the 21st century

    Welcome to it's not a textbook (and it wasn't about order of operations anyway).

    We have this thing called the internet so people can share information without killing trees

    We also have this thing called textbooks, that schools order so that Maths classes don't have to be held in computer labs.

    It’s the resource material for a college course

    And the college doesn't teach order of operations.

    That’s like the definition of a text book

    by someone who can't back up their statements with actual textbooks.

    One is a PhD teaching a college course on the subject

    Yep, exactly what I said - a random person as far as order of operations is concerned, since he teaches Set Theory and not order of operations.

    the other is Wolfram

    Yeah, their programmers didn't know The Distributive Law either.

    I’m willing to bet their credentials beat “claims to be a high school math teacher” pretty soundly

    Happy to take that bet. Guarantee you neither of them has studied order of operations since they were in high school.

    This portion of the discussion wasn’t about order of operations

    Yes it is. I said that order of operations dictates that you have to solve binary operators before unary operators, then you started trying to argue about unary operators.

    it was about the number of inputs an operator (+, and - in this case) has

    Yep, the ones with more inputs, binary operators, have to be solved first.

    Try to keep up

    Says person who's forgotten why we were talking about it to begin with! 😂

    At least your repeated use of the plural maths means you’re not anywhere near my kids.

    Well that outs yourself as living in a country which has fallen behind the rest of the world in Maths, where high school teachers don't even have to have Maths qualifications to teach Maths.

    when those symbols are being used as a “sign of the quality” of the number it’s referring to

    which is always. As usual, the comprehension issue is at your end.

    not when it’s being used to indicate an operation like addition or subtraction

    Yes it is 😂

    Hopefully that clears it up

    That you still have comprehension issues? I knew that already

    This is ignoring the fact that a random screen shot could be anything

    The name of the book is in the top left. Not very observant either.

    For all I know you wrote that yourself

    You don't care how much you embarrass yourself do you, given the name of the book is in the top left and anyone can find and download it. 😂

    because the first “+” isn’t an operator

    Yes it is! 😂

    It’s, as your own picture says, a sign of the quality of 2

    and a sign of the quality of the 3 too. There are 2 of them, one for each Term, since it's a 1:1 relationship.

    I would love to know how you get to a sum or difference with only one input.

    You don't. Both need 2 Terms with signs. In this case +2 and +3.

    2 is the first, and 3 is the second

    Yep, corresponding to the 2 plus signs, +2 and +3. 1 unary operator, 1 Term, 2 of each.

    Two inputs for addition

    2 jumps on the number line, starting from 0, +2, then +3, ends up at +5 on the number line. This is how it's taught in elementary school.

    Did you get it this time?

    The real question is did you?

    Was that too fast?

    No, you just forgot one of the plus signs in your counting, the one we usually omit by convention if at the start of the expression (whereas we never omit a minus sign if it's at the start of the expression).

    You can go back and read it again if you need to

    I'm not the one who doesn't know how unary operators work. Try it again, this time not leaving out the first plus sign.

    Fine, operation then

    Nope, not an operation either.

    The fact that you think “!” is the same thing as brackets

    I see you don't know how grouping symbols work either.

    Maybe you’re just being weirdly pedantic about operator vs operation

    Grouping symbols are neither.

    Which would be a strange hill to die on since the original topic was operations

    You were the one who incorrectly brought grouping symbols into it, not me.

    I could keep providing sources

    You haven't provided any yet! 😂

    I still don’t have the time to screen shot some random crap with no supporting evidence

    Glad you finally admitted you have no supporting evidence. Bye then! 😂

  • they aren’t teaching math.

    Yes we are. Adults forgetting it is another matter altogether.

    There’s no such thing as “order of operations” in math

    Yes there is! 😂

    Do you think I’m wrong?

    No, I know you're wrong.

    If so, why?

    If you don't solve binary operators before unary operators you get wrong answers. 2+3x4=14, not 20. 3x4=3+3+3+3 by definition

    Yes we are

    Yes and no. You teach how to solve equations, but not the fundamentals (and if you do then kudos to you, as it's not a trivial accomplishment). Fundamentals, most of the time, are taught in universities. It's so much easier that way, but doesn't mean it's right. People call it math, which is fair enough, but it's not really math in a sense that you don't understand the underlying principles.

    Yes there is!

    Nope.

    There's only commutation, association, distribution, and identity. It doesn't matter in which order you apply any of those properties, the result will stay correct.

    2×2×(2-1)/2 = 2×(4-2)/2 = 1×(4-2) = 4-2 = 2

    As you can see, I didn't follow any particular order and still got the correct result. Because no basic principle was broken.

    Or I could also go

    2×2×(2-1)/2 = 4×(2-1)/2 = 4×(1-0.5) = 4×0.5 = 2

    Same result. Completely different order, yet still correct.

    My response to the rest goes back to the aforementioned.

  • Yes we are

    Yes and no. You teach how to solve equations, but not the fundamentals (and if you do then kudos to you, as it's not a trivial accomplishment). Fundamentals, most of the time, are taught in universities. It's so much easier that way, but doesn't mean it's right. People call it math, which is fair enough, but it's not really math in a sense that you don't understand the underlying principles.

    Yes there is!

    Nope.

    There's only commutation, association, distribution, and identity. It doesn't matter in which order you apply any of those properties, the result will stay correct.

    2×2×(2-1)/2 = 2×(4-2)/2 = 1×(4-2) = 4-2 = 2

    As you can see, I didn't follow any particular order and still got the correct result. Because no basic principle was broken.

    Or I could also go

    2×2×(2-1)/2 = 4×(2-1)/2 = 4×(1-0.5) = 4×0.5 = 2

    Same result. Completely different order, yet still correct.

    My response to the rest goes back to the aforementioned.

    You teach how to solve equations, but not the fundamentals

    Nope. We teach the fundamentals. Adults not remembering them doesn't mean they weren't taught. Just pick up a Maths textbook. It's all in there. Always has been.

    Fundamentals, most of the time, are taught in universities

    No they're not. They only teach order of operations from a remedial point of view. Most of them forget about The Distributive Law. I've seen multiple Professors be told by their students that they were wrong.

    it’s not really math in a sense that you don’t understand the underlying principles

    The Constructivist learners have no trouble at all understanding it.

    Nope.

    Yep!

    There’s only commutation, association, distribution, and identity.

    And many proofs of other rules, which you've decided to omit mentioning.

    It doesn’t matter in which order you apply any of those properties, the result will stay correct

    But the order you apply the operations does matter, hence the proven rules to be followed.

    2×2×(2-2)/2

    Notably you picked an example that has no addition, subtraction, or distribution in it. That's called cherry-picking.

    Completely different order, yet still correct

    Yep, because you cherry-picked a simple example where it doesn't matter. It's never going to matter when you only pick operations which have the same precedence.

    My response to the rest goes back to the aforementioned

    ...cherry-picking.

  • You teach how to solve equations, but not the fundamentals

    Nope. We teach the fundamentals. Adults not remembering them doesn't mean they weren't taught. Just pick up a Maths textbook. It's all in there. Always has been.

    Fundamentals, most of the time, are taught in universities

    No they're not. They only teach order of operations from a remedial point of view. Most of them forget about The Distributive Law. I've seen multiple Professors be told by their students that they were wrong.

    it’s not really math in a sense that you don’t understand the underlying principles

    The Constructivist learners have no trouble at all understanding it.

    Nope.

    Yep!

    There’s only commutation, association, distribution, and identity.

    And many proofs of other rules, which you've decided to omit mentioning.

    It doesn’t matter in which order you apply any of those properties, the result will stay correct

    But the order you apply the operations does matter, hence the proven rules to be followed.

    2×2×(2-2)/2

    Notably you picked an example that has no addition, subtraction, or distribution in it. That's called cherry-picking.

    Completely different order, yet still correct

    Yep, because you cherry-picked a simple example where it doesn't matter. It's never going to matter when you only pick operations which have the same precedence.

    My response to the rest goes back to the aforementioned

    ...cherry-picking.

    We teach the fundamentals

    Sure. They are, however, not the focus. At least that's not how I've been taught in school. You're not teaching kids how to prove the quadratic formula, do you? No, you teach them how to use it instead. The goal here is different.

    They only teach order of operations.

    Again, with the order of operations. It's not a thing. I've given you two examples that don't follow any.

    The constructivist learners...

    That's kinda random, but sure?

    And many proofs of other rules...

    They all derive from each other. Even those fundamental properties are. For example, commutation is used to prove identity.

    But the order you apply operators does matter

    2+2-2 = 4-2 = 2+0 = 0

    2 operators, no order followed.

    If we take your example

    2+3×4 then it's not an order of operation that plays the role here. You have no property that would allow for (2+3)×4 to be equal 2+3×4

    Look, 2+3×4 = 1+3×(2+2)+1 = 1+(6+6)+1 = 7+7 = 14

    Is that not correct?

    Notably you picked...

    It literally has subtraction and distribution. I thought you taught math, no?

    2-2 is 2 being, hear me out, subtracted from 2

    Same with 2×(2-2), I can distribute the value so it becomes 4-4

    No addition? Who cares, subtraction literally works the same, but in opposite direction. Same properties apply. Would you feel better if I wrote (2-2) as (1+1-2)? I think not.

    Also, can you explain how is that cherry-picking? You only need one equation that is solvable out of order to prove order of operation not existing. One is conclusive enough. If I give you two or more, it doesn't add anything meaningful.

  • We teach the fundamentals

    Sure. They are, however, not the focus. At least that's not how I've been taught in school. You're not teaching kids how to prove the quadratic formula, do you? No, you teach them how to use it instead. The goal here is different.

    They only teach order of operations.

    Again, with the order of operations. It's not a thing. I've given you two examples that don't follow any.

    The constructivist learners...

    That's kinda random, but sure?

    And many proofs of other rules...

    They all derive from each other. Even those fundamental properties are. For example, commutation is used to prove identity.

    But the order you apply operators does matter

    2+2-2 = 4-2 = 2+0 = 0

    2 operators, no order followed.

    If we take your example

    2+3×4 then it's not an order of operation that plays the role here. You have no property that would allow for (2+3)×4 to be equal 2+3×4

    Look, 2+3×4 = 1+3×(2+2)+1 = 1+(6+6)+1 = 7+7 = 14

    Is that not correct?

    Notably you picked...

    It literally has subtraction and distribution. I thought you taught math, no?

    2-2 is 2 being, hear me out, subtracted from 2

    Same with 2×(2-2), I can distribute the value so it becomes 4-4

    No addition? Who cares, subtraction literally works the same, but in opposite direction. Same properties apply. Would you feel better if I wrote (2-2) as (1+1-2)? I think not.

    Also, can you explain how is that cherry-picking? You only need one equation that is solvable out of order to prove order of operation not existing. One is conclusive enough. If I give you two or more, it doesn't add anything meaningful.

    At least that’s not how I’ve been taught in school

    If you had a bad teacher that doesn't mean everyone else had a bad teacher.

    You’re not teaching kids how to prove the quadratic formula, do you?

    We teach them how to do proofs, including several specific ones.

    No, you teach them how to use it instead.

    We teach them how to use everything, and how to do proofs as well. Your whole argument is just one big strawman.

    Again, with the order of operations

    Happens to be the topic of the post.

    It’s not a thing

    Yes it is! 😂

    I’ve given you two examples that don’t follow any

    So you could not do the brackets first and still get the right answer? Nope!

    2×2×(2-2)/2=0

    2×2×2-2/2=7

    That’s kinda random, but sure?

    Not random at all, given you were talking about students understanding how Maths works.

    2+3×4 then it’s not an order of operation that plays the role here

    Yes it is! 😂 If I have 1 2-litre bottle of milk, and 4 3-litre bottles of milk, there's only 1 correct answer for how many litres of milk of have, and it ain't 20! 😂 Even elementary school kids know how to work it out just by counting up.

    They all derive from each other

    No they don't. The proof of order of operations has got nothing to do with any of the properties you mentioned.

    For example, commutation is used to prove identity

    And neither is used to prove the order of operations.

    2 operators, no order followed

    Again with a cherry-picked example that only includes operators of the same precedence.

    You have no property that would allow for (2+3)×4 to be equal 2+3×4

    And yet we have a proof of why 14 is the only correct answer to 2+3x4, why you have to do the multiplication first.

    Is that not correct?

    Of course it is. So what?

    It literally has subtraction and distribution

    No it didn't. It had Brackets (with subtraction inside) and Multiplication and Division.

    I thought you taught math, no?

    Yep, and I just pointed out that what you just said is wrong. 2-2(1+2) has Subtraction and Distribution.

    2-2 is 2 being, hear me out, subtracted from 2

    Which was done first because you had it inside Brackets, therefore not done in the Subtraction step in order of operations, but the Brackets step.

    Also, can you explain how is that cherry-picking?

    You already know - you know which operations to pick to make it look like there's no such thing as order of operations. If I tell you to look up at the sky at midnight and say "look - there's no such thing as the sun", that doesn't mean there's no such thing as the sun.

  • Palantir partners to develop AI software for nuclear construction

    Technology technology
    4
    33 Stimmen
    4 Beiträge
    8 Aufrufe
    T
    The grift goes nuclear. No surprise.
  • Fatphobia Is Fueled by AI-Created Images, Study Finds

    Technology technology
    14
    1
    15 Stimmen
    14 Beiträge
    7 Aufrufe
    K
    I pretty much agree. The only thing I would add is that it's not our place to tell others to lose weight or to point out their weight; people already know they are overweight and that it's unhealthy. We shouldn't be policing other people's bodies. It's also possible to be overweight and have body positivity; being overweight doesn't equate to being unattractive.
  • In Militarizing Push, Russian School Children To Build Drones

    Technology technology
    37
    1
    263 Stimmen
    37 Beiträge
    24 Aufrufe
    Z
    https://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/tu-quoque
  • Acute Leukemia Burden Trends and Future Predictions

    Technology technology
    5
    1
    5 Stimmen
    5 Beiträge
    15 Aufrufe
    G
    Looks like the delay in 2011 was so big the data became available after the 2017 one
  • 78 Stimmen
    9 Beiträge
    7 Aufrufe
    U
    Obligatory Knowledge Fight Reference: [https://knowledgefight.libsyn.com/1044-june-2-2025](In this installment, Dan and Jordan discuss a strange day on Alex's show where he spends a fair amount of time trying to dissuade his listeners from getting too suspicious about Palantir.)
  • Pimax: one more brand exposed for promoting "positive reviews".

    Technology technology
    2
    1
    55 Stimmen
    2 Beiträge
    13 Aufrufe
    moose@moose.bestM
    This doesn't really surprise me, I've gotten weird vibes from Pimax for years. Not so much to do with their hardware, but how their sales / promo team operates. A while back at my old workplace we randomly got contacted by Pimax trying to have us carry their headset, which was weird since we didn't sell VR stuff or computers even, just other electronics. It was a very out of place request which we basically said we wouldn't consider it until we can verify the quality of the headset, after which they never replied.
  • Google is Using AI to Censor Independent Websites

    Technology technology
    40
    1
    147 Stimmen
    40 Beiträge
    19 Aufrufe
    demonsword@lemmy.worldD
    You can go to communism Island if you want Despite all the propaganda, there is no place right now on the face of our planet that is under communism. bit [sic] I’d rather have capitalism, thank you Well, aren't you fortunate, you already have all the capitalism you want, anywhere you go. Choke on it.
  • Bookmark keywords, again (Firefox)

    Technology technology
    3
    4 Stimmen
    3 Beiträge
    8 Aufrufe
    bokehphilia@lemmy.mlB
    This is terrible news. I also have a keyboard-centric workflow and also make heavy use of keyword bookmarks. I too use custom bookmarklets containing JavaScript that I can invoke with a few key strokes for multiple uses including: 1: Auto-expanding all nested Reddit comments on posts with many comments on desktop. 2: Downloading videos from certain web sites. 3: Playing a play-by-forum online board game. 4: Helping expand and aid in downloading images from a certain host. 5: Sending X (Twitter) URLs in the browser bar to Nitter or TWStalker. And all these without touching the mouse! It's really disappointing to read that Firefox could be taking so much capability in the browser away.