NavList:

I'm puzzled by how the expression (1 + 2) gets elevated to the top of what I see as part of the bottom of a fraction. In other words, to me, what's on top is to be divided by everything underneath. I'd read it as 6/((2 X (1+2)) or 6 X I/2  X 1/3. So, I say it's 1, as does my Casio fx 260.

 Evidently, however, the expression 6 / 2 (1+2) is nowadays to be read as 6/2 times 3. My Casio agrees; says it's 9.

Anybody for who versus whom?  :-)

Any elementary algebra text will tell you to clear parentheses first.   So:

6 / 2 (1+2) =  6 / 2 * 3

The text will also tell you that you do multiplication and division before adds and subtracts.   We have none of them, only divisions and multiplications.  But there are no hard and fast rules in which order to do operators of equal precedence.

So is it (6/2) * 3   or  6 / (2*3)  ?

The former gives 9, the latter 1.

In the computer world, operators of equal precedence are usually done left-to-right, so a computer program would most likely give 9 as the answer.

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From: Gary LaPook <NoReply_LaPook@navlist.net>
To: luabel{at}ymail.com
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2017 5:10 PM
Subject: [NavList] Re: Are we all doing our math correctly?

According to the video, the correct answer is 9.

My answer is 1. 

6 ÷ 2(1+2) = 

gl

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From: Gary LaPook <NoReply_LaPook@navlist.net>
To: garylapook---.net
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2017 2:30 PM
Subject: [NavList] Are we all doing our math correctly?

What is the answer to the problem:       

6  divided by 2(2 + 3) = ?

Since we post formulas on this site we may be having a miscommunications problem. Of course adding brackets or parentheses will solve it. 

See:

https://www.tmn.today/2017/07/viral-math-problem-video-shows-real-answer/?source=Rob