Easy, right? Yet, very soon, everyone who tried came up with two very different solutions: for one part the result is 16, while for the other it is no doubt the answer is 1.
SO :
(2+2) = 4
8/2(4)
First you need to get rid of the parentheses
2(4)=8
8/8=1 the answer is 1
The source of the mistakes we make is often due to the speed with which we want to find the solution. In the case of this test, the mathematical operations normally obey an order – commonly called PEMDAS – in order to find a solution.
“But that’s not the right answer. »
A basic rule on operating priorities that is also used in France, as specified by the site mathematiquesfaciles.com. In its dedicated space for 5th level exercises, the platform writes that “in a series of multiplications and divisions, the calculations are done in the order of writing”.
So once and for all the answer would be:
2+2=4, 8:2=4 and 4×4=16.
What do we mean by all this? That the reader can give the answer he wants, 16 or 1. Both are correct because the expression is simply ambiguous.
