this post was submitted on 12 Dec 2023
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submitted 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) by wischi@programming.dev to c/memes@lemmy.ml
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https://zeta.one/viral-math/

I wrote a (very long) blog post about those viral math problems and am looking for feedback, especially from people who are not convinced that the problem is ambiguous.

It's about a 30min read so thank you in advance if you really take the time to read it, but I think it's worth it if you joined such discussions in the past, but I'm probably biased because I wrote it :)

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[–] SmartmanApps@programming.dev 0 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

FACT CHECK 5/5

most people just dismiss that, because they “already know” the answer

Maths teachers already know how to do Maths. Huh, who would've thought? Next thing you'll be telling me is English teachers know the rules of grammar and how to spell!

and a two-sentence comment can’t convince them how and why it’s ambiguous

Literally NOTHING can convince a Maths teacher it's ambiguous - Maths teachers already know all the rules of Maths, and which ones you're breaking

Why read something if you have nothing to learn about the topic that’s so simple that you know for a fact that you are right

To fact check it for the benefit of others

At this point I hope you understand how and why the original problem is ambiguous

At this point I hope you understand why it isn't ambiguous. Tip: next time check some Maths textbooks or ask a Maths teacher

that one of the two shouldn’t even be a thing

Neither of them is a thing

not everybody shares your opinion and preferences

Facts you mean. The rules of Maths are facts

There is no mathematically true

There absolutely is! You just chose not to ask any experts about it

the most important thing with this “viral math” expressions is to recognize that

...they are all solvable by following the rules of Maths

One could argue that there should also be a strong connection between coefficients and variables (like in r=C/2π)

There is - The Distributive Law and Terms

it’s fine to stick to “BIDMAS” in school but be aware that that’s not the full story

No, BIDMAS and left to right is the full story

If you encounter such discussions in the wild you could just post a link to this page

No, post a link to this order of operations thread index - it has textbook references, proofs, memes, worked examples, the works!