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| Math Central | Quandaries & Queries |
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Question from Jacky, a parent: 4*4+4*4+4-4*4=??? |
Hi Jacky,
The convention that we use in mathematical expressions is that you perform any multiplications before additions or subtractions. Thus
\[4 \times 4 + 4 \times 4 + 4 - 4 \times 4\]
should be seen as
\[16 + 16 + 4 - 16 = 20\]
Penny
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