no one would ever write a problem like this

And yet Maths textbooks do! 😂

when was the last time I saw an X to mean multiplication

In a Maths textbook

1+1÷2 doesn’t even register in my brain properly

You don't know that the obelus means divide??

having an agreed-upon convention absolutely matters for arriving at expected computational outcomes,

Proven rules actually

we call it a convention

No we don't - the order of operations rules

it’s not a “correct” vs “incorrect” principle of mathematics

The rules most definitely are

It’s just a rule we agreed upon to allow consistent results

proven rules which are true whether you agree to it or not! 😂

any good math educator will be clear on this

Yep

If you know the PEMDAS convention already, that’s good, since it’s by far the most common today

No it isn't.

But if you don’t yet, don’t worry

As long as you know the rules then that's all that matters

You’ve completely not understood that order of operations is an arbitrary convention

No, you've completely not understood that they are universal rules of Maths

How did you decide to expand the definition of multiplication before evaluating the addition? Convention

The definition of Multiplication as being repeated addition

You can’t write 2 + 2 ÷ 2 like this

Yes you can

so how are you gonna decide whether to decide to divide or add first?

The rules of Maths, which says Division must be before Addition

PEMDAS isn’t obvious to “common people”?

Everyone is taught the rules of Maths

If “×” means “groups of,”

It means repeated addition actually

“2+2×4” means “two plus two groups of four”

No, it means 2+2+2+2+2

Sure the order of operations could be arbitrarily different

No they can't

I feel like we settled on that order because it simply makes more sense intuitively

It's because Multiplication is defined as repeated addition, so if you don't do it before addition you get wrong answers

Your obviously is only a convention

Nope. Rules of Maths

it would have to have different order or parentheses or both.

Neither. Multiplication is always before Addition, hence "obviously"

Of course everything in math is convention

Nope. The vast majority of it is proven rules

2+(2*4) is more obvious to common people

Weird then how many people were able to get this right without brackets for centuries before we started using brackets in Maths (which we've only had for 300 years)

That’s normal for multiple choice

No it isn't.

sometimes all the answers are correct

Not in multiple choice they aren't. At best you might have "D) All of the above" if there's genuinely more than 1 answer

We can assume

Someone screwed up somewhere, and there will be lots of complaints from students. Despite it being "you only had 1 job", proofreaders still miss things sometimes...

different places teach different conventions

But they all teach the same rules

some places say that PEDMAS is a very strict order

Which is totally fine and works

Other places say that it is PE D|M A|S,

Which is also totally fine and works

even in this post, say it’s PEMDAS

Also totally fine and works

it’s simply a matter of if the people talking agree on the convention to use

No-one has to agree on any convention - they can use whatever they want and as long as they obey the rules it will work

can’t agree on

Educated people agree that which convention you use doesn't matter.

Nothing about math is real

You spelt "everything" wrong

Every single thing about it is abstract

Representing something real underneath in every case - 1+1=2 can refer to apples, eggs, cardboard boxes, anything at all.

PEMDAS isn’t even real

Yes it is

It’s something we made up

No it isn't. They are proven rules of Maths arising from the definitions of the operators to begin with.

Creating fake problems by inserting ambiguity is ridiculous

There's no ambiguity in the order of operations rules

Then you’re just a crank who lies to thirteen-year-olds about some bullshit you made up.

Weird then that's in in Maths textbooks isn't it 😂

Both 2(8+0)2 and 2(8*1)2

Says another person who can't tell the difference between a(b+c) and a(bc) 🙄

Nobody but you has this problem

Knowing how to read Maths textbooks is a problem?? 😂 I can assure you that all my students have this same "problem"

Real math doesn’t work differently based on how you got there

It does if you have different expressions, such as 8/2(1+3) and 8/2x(1+3)

B 8/2(1+3)=8/(2+6)=8/8

E

DM 8/8=1

AS

B 8/2x(1+3)=8/2x4

E

DM 8/2x4=4x4=16

AS

Different expressions, different order of evaluation, same rules of Maths (both following BEDMAS here) resulting in the different evaluations of the different expressions 🙄

We can see the Acrobat window in those scans you found online.

...and the ones that came with the textbook, and not in the photo's 😂

You think 2(8)2 is 128 if that’s simplified from 2(8+0)2… but 256 if it’s simplified from 2(8*1)2. In short: no

says person who can't tell the difference between a(b+c) and a(bc) 😂

I think you’re about fifteen years old. You had an unpleasant teacher who belittled you, and you’ve identified with the aggressor. Your whole online persona is posturing to always be smarterer than everybody else

#EveryAccusationIsAConfession

Wolfram fucking Alpha is wrong about basic algebra

Which is an established fact

Faced with a contradiction that requires you to insist (8*1) ≠ (8+0)

again says person who can't tell the difference between a(b+c) and a(bc) 😂

The word you should be looking for is, “oops.”

yet again says person who can't tell the difference between a(b+c) and a(bc) 😂

Don’t move the goalposts

I didn't. You're the one who has been desperately trying to make a False Equivalence argument between a(b+c) and a(bc)² 🙄

I’ve posted textbooks showing that “solving brackets” only applies to the inside,

No you haven't. A college refresher isn't a Maths textbook, and I already pointed out to you that they don't mention The Distributive Law at all, unlike, you know, high school Maths textbooks 🙄

distribution is part of multiplication

And the high school Maths textbooks I posted prove you are wrong about that 🙄

and optional

And the high school Maths textbooks I posted prove you are wrong about that too, 🙄 unless you think "optional" is a valid interpretation of what "must" means 😂

You’ve said yourself your magic rule is taught in highschool,

Yep

so a refresher course in college would never ignore it

And yet you proved that they did in fact forget about it 🙄

Now instead of giving weak excuses

they say to person who has been backed up by every textbook they posted so far 😂

provide your part of the proof.

Just scroll back dude - they're all still there, like here for example.

And I’m not talking about multiplication

Well that'll be a nice change then 😂

I want to see anywhere where a distribution is given precedence over an exponent

Because you are hell bent on making a False Equivalence argument between a(b+c) and a(bc)². I don't care dude. there is no exponent in the meme. I'll take that as an admission that you are wrong about a(b+c) then.