#math sux

Teacher: Pay attention! You’re going to use this a lot in the future!

Me: ill just marry someone who’s better at math than me, simple.

I see these “viral math problems” a lot on the internet. In this one, people argue as to whether the answer is 1 or 9 based on which order of operations is correct. 

To me, the argument is a silly one. The way it is written is simply confusing. And the attention is more about debating rules than about the mathematics itself. 

Written either 6÷[2(1+2)] or (6÷2)(1+2) or with a large division sign is more proper.

The usual operations on real numbers are binary meaning that expressions are only proper if written as one number (or grouped expression) operated on one other number (or grouped expression). If you don’t have this you need to use symbols to group things or else it is confusing. So the issue is not in the answer but how it is written.

I think the real lesson here is that mathematics is a human activity. Central to that activity is communication. We shouldn’t be trying to confuse anyone by the way we write mathematics, we should be doing the opposite.