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

⁨248⁩ ⁨likes⁩

Submitted ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨Obelix@feddit.org⁩ to ⁨technology@lemmy.world⁩

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/a-fake-facebook-event-disguised-as-a-math-problem-has-been-one-of-its-top-posts-for-6-months-231852601.html

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Comments

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  • jordanlund@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    I’m sure we’re all geniuses here, but just in case…

    Please excuse my dear aunt Sally.

    Parenthesis, exponents, multiplication, division, addition, subtraction.

    Why? Becauseca bunch of dead Greeks say so!

    3x3-3÷3+3

    (3x3)-(3÷3)+3

    9-1+3

    8+3

    11

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    • czardestructo@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      I guess remembering grade school order of operation means you’re a guinus now? Bar has gotten pretty low…

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      • AnotherPenguin@programming.dev ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        And it will go even lower as people start relying mpre on AI…

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      • SARGE@startrek.website ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        That’s the point.

        Set the bar low, but just high enough that tons of people still trip over it.

        Sit back and enjoy the comment wars.

        The people who are confident but wrong are too proud to admit they were wrong even if they realize it, and comment angrily.

        The people who are right and know why, comment for corrections and some to show off how S-M-R-T they are.

        The people who are wrong but willing to accept that just have their realization and probably don’t think about it again. So do the people who don’t know and/or care.

        But those first two groups will keep the post going in both shares and comments, because “look at all these wrong people”

        It’s all designed to boost engagement.

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      • rigatti@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        G U I N U S.

        I know it’s probably a typo, but I’m enjoying it.

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    • vext01@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      For the programmers: operator precedence.

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    • Mistic@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      The “why” goes a little further than that.

      In actuality, it’s because of fundamental properties of operations

      • Commutation

      a + b = b + a

      a×b = b×a

      • Association

      (a + b) + c = a + (b + c)

      (a×b)×c = a×(b×c)

      • Identity

      a + 0 = a

      a×1 = a

      If you know that, then PEMDAS and such are useless because they’re derived from those properties but do not fully encompass them.

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    • Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Not a genius. But if subtraction is last, why isn’t it 9-4?

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      • cecilkorik@lemmy.ca ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Parenthesis, exponents, multiplication, division, addition, subtraction.

        should actually be

        Parenthesis, exponents, (multiplication and division), (addition and subtraction).

        Addition and subtraction are given the same priority, and are done in the same step, from left to right.

        It’s not a great system of notation, it could be made far clearer (and parenthesis allow you to make it as clear as you like), but it’s essentially the universal standard now and it’s what we’re stuck with.

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      • aliceblossom@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Because its not really “1 plus 3”, its negative 1 plus 3 which is two. I know it seems a little weird but the minus sign is " tied" to the thing following it.

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      • fluxion@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Addition/subtraction work out the dame regardless of how you order the operations. If you do subtraction last you have:

        9-1+3

        and you are adding 3 to the result of (9-1). Since you are trying to perform it before the (9-1) operation is carried out, you can add 3 to the 9:

        12-1 = 11

        or you can add three to the -1 and get:

        9+2 = 11

        You only end up with 9-4 if you were subtracting 3 rather than adding three. It all becomes more obvious if you read the original as:

        9 + (-1) + 3

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      • Geodad@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        It’s multiplication or division from left to right followed by addition or subtraction, also from left to right.

        That’s where a lot of people fuck up.

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    • barsoap@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Why? Because a bunch of dead Greeks say so!

      The Greeks certainly didn’t come up with PEMDAS. US teachers too lazy to teach kids actual maths did. And that’s before taking into account that the Greeks didn’t come up with Algebra.

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      • dohpaz42@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        US teachers too lazy to teach kids actual maths did.

        What’s lazy about learning PEMDAS? And what’s the non-lazy/superior way?

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    • pulsewidth@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
      [deleted]
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      • jordanlund@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Multiplication and Division, and Addition and Subtraction are executed at the same level and done in left to right order.

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  • jjjalljs@ttrpg.network ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    This kind of problem falls under “communicating badly and acting smug when misunderstood”. Use parenthesis and the problem goes away.

    xkcd.com/169/

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    • themagzuz@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      on that note, can we please have parentheses in language. i keep making ambiguous sentences

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      • Gsus4@mander.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        My language teachers always told me it was bad form to use too much or even to nest parenthesis…

        Then I found lisp…

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      • Clent@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        People try and use commas for this sort of clarification and are eviscerate for it.

        With these sort of math problems, the rules are taught early and then all subsequent math is written in an unambiguous form.

        Language has the oddity of going the other way around where the rules get more complex as a display for advanced skilled.

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      • entropicdrift@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        We have them in written language, though?

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      • AbidanYre@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Isn’t that basically what commas are for?

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      • KingPorkChop@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Why (I don’t see) not

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      • gamer@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        This is why grammar is important, and “grammar nazis” are the only good kind of nazis.

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      • barsoap@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        lojban.org/…/section-parentheses.html

        Also xkcd.com/191/. Also vlasisku.lojban.org/xekce. Also www.youtube.com/watch?v=gv0QIbGc8i8.

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  • nuko147@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Boomers and Xgens need to prove, that they remember basic school math in FB lmao.

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    • thedruid@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Gen xers? Don’t like them. They’re not noticing you right now.

      Very independent, and cranky generation.

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    • corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      I’m more worried about the gratuitous comma and what it means for the state of education.

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      • pinball_wizard@lemmy.zip ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        What, gratuitous, comma?

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      • nuko147@lemm.ee ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Nah, people can write things while being a bit drunk, you know. I’m speaking for a friend, not me, ofc.

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    • systemglitch@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Who, the people who never had calculators in their pockets? No worries, we can do math better than you.

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      • wondrous_strange@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Knowing basic arithmetic does not mean you know Math, and the fact you so hung up about this trivial aspect says a lot about you. Additionally, you express yourself like a boomer.

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  • Dreaming_Novaling@lemmy.zip ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    I was good at math and it was one of my favorite core subjects in school, so I know I’m a weirdo but… I never understood how people couldn’t understand basic PEMDAS/BEDMAS/Whatever-the-fuck-your-country-calls-it.

    Obviously these problems are shitty engagement bait because they don’t use parentheses, but still, seeing people fuck up the fact that Multiplication AND Division occur at the same time, and then the next step is Addition AND Subtraction just stupefies me.

    Like, did you sleep through 4 years of elementary school to miss that fact??? Even in middle school pre-algebra teachers still did PEMDAS refreshers. I get that once I get out of college I’m probably gonna forget half the pre-calc shit I learned because I won’t need it, and I’m not being drilled on it everyday like people in school are, but PEMDAS is a fundamental and basic daily life skill that everyone should know…

    I really wish we gave a fuck about US education.

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    • AlphaOmega@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      I was bad at math, but I still managed to get through precal and still remember PEMDAS

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    • kameecoding@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      For me it’s the arguments when there is a parentheses but no operator in these baits e.g. 2(4 - 2)

      If you don’t know operator orders I have given up long ago, but I have seen a few lengthy discussions about this

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      • Mistic@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Oh yeah, that’s a fun one.

        Where I live, this would be considered juxtaposition, at least by uni professors and scientific community, so 2(4-2) isn’t the same as 2×(4-2).

        This way, equations such as 15/2(4-2) end up with a definite solution.

        Usually, however, it is obvious even without assuming juxtaposition because you can look at previous operations. Not to mention that it’s most common with variables (Eg. “2x/3y”).

        So,

        15/2(4-2) = 3.75

        While

        15/2×(4-2) = 15

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    • barsoap@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      I never understood how people couldn’t understand basic PEMDAS/BEDMAS/Whatever-the-fuck-your-country-calls-it.

      There’s no “whatever-the-fuck-your-country-calls-it”, the US is the only country using it, and only up to high school. At least I’m not seeing any papers coming out of the US relying on it so at some point they’re dropping it and do what everyone else is doing: Write equations such that you don’t need a left-to-right rule to disambiguate things. Also, using multiplication by juxtaposition (2a + 4a^2^).

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  • superminerJG@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    question: is there something more than the expression evaluating to 11?

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    • DancingBear@midwest.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
      [deleted]
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      • 0xD@infosec.pub ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        How do you get 5?

        Multiplication and division go first, so it’s 9-1+3=11

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  • Clent@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Anyone on Facebook that attempts to answer this or engage within its comments has already failed the test.

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    • lastunusedusername2@sh.itjust.works ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Anyone on Facebook that attempts to answer this or engage within its comments has already failed the test.

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  • NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Arguing about maths is like dancing to architecture.

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    • captainlezbian@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Hey, some architecture is asking for it like Stonehenge

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  • aMockTie@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Hey, this is Presh Talwalkar.

    discussion of a brief history of this viral math problem, followed by explanations of common incorrect answers. Finally followed by brief discussion on the order of operations, concluding in a final example that ultimately equals 11

    And that’s the answer. Thank you so much for making us one of the best communities on YouTube, where we solve the world’s problems, one video at at time.

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  • billwashere@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    So order of operations is hard?

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    • HereIAm@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      The issue normally with these “trick” questions is the ambiguous nature of that division sign (not so much a problem here) or people not knowing to just go left to right when all operators are of the same priority. A common mistake is to think division is prioritised above multiplication, when it actually has the same priority. Someone should have included some parenthesis in PEDMAS aka. PE(DM)(AS) 😄

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      • vithigar@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        The same priority operations can be done in any order without affecting the result, that’s why they can be same priority and don’t need an explicit order.

        6 × 4 ÷ 2 × 3 ÷ 9 evaluates the same regardless of order. Can you provide a counter example?

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      • AnotherPenguin@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Another common issue is thinking “parentheses go first” and then beginning by solving the operation beside them (mostly multiplication). The point being that what’s inside the parentheses goes first, not what’s beside them.

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    • Zenith@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Yeah and I’m tired of pretending it’s not!

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    • Gsus4@mander.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Next we’re going to have an epic debate on whether work done by the system is positive or negative and we’re all going to feel really smart and passionate about it. Like one of those Science vs Religion debate clubs.

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  • roofuskit@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    This is the kind of post designed to invoke a reaction. Facebook’s and pretty much every other algorithm driven social media is designed to promote posts that have high interaction. So a post that invokes lots of negative reactions gets lots of promotion. Hence the downfall of modern society.

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  • queermunist@lemmy.ml ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    So if it’s not really an event

    And it’s not really a math problem

    What the hell is it??

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    • catloaf@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Engagement bait

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    • Zwuzelmaus@feddit.org ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Entertainment.

      The only thing that will remain on yt anyway after AI has taken over the content generation and we can trust no “creator” anymore.

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  • frezik@midwest.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Every one of these only makes me say “wouldn’t it be great if we did everything with RPN”?

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  • maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    What’s the scam?

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    • cabbage@piefed.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Not strictly a scam, but there's a little money to be made creating viral content on Facebook. They receive a tiny portion of the ad revenue from Facebook when they generate engagement.

      It's just Facebook sucking really.

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      • maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Thanks 🙏

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    • drool@lemmy.catsp.it ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      11

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      • Lembot_0002@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Yes, we can count. I suppose the question was “So what? What is scummy in some viral post?”

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  • Almacca@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Ah, yes. It’s only for genius.

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  • CaptPretentious@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    This thread shows that a whole bunch of people need to start taking online education courses. Getting back your algebra skills, some science perhaps, communication, history, etc.

    I don’t know where you can get a proper education for that after grade school, but I see Brilliant.org advertised a lot.

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  • manuc66@programming.dev ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    ÷ could be a minus sign see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_sign?wprov=sfla1

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    • Venator@lemmy.nz ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Except that it has English text above it…

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