One of the best things about the internet is that you can get answers to almost every question. You end up with a solution, whether it comes from family and friends or strangers from all over the world.
However, in addition to serving as a great source of information and useful in our daily routine tasks, the internet has also evolved into a forum for discussion.
Also, these online debates are more intense and less efficient than face-to-face discussions. Even a simple math equation sparked a firestorm. Why do we do it, and is there ever a winner?
The equation that went viral
The math equation to solve is “8 ÷ 2(2+2) =?” It’s simple, right? But the person who posted it said that just one in a million people can solve it. As you would expect, this got the ball rolling.
Widely different viewpoints
People started sharing what they thought was the right answer in no time. However, it was clear that they didn’t all agree. After all, the responses were evenly distributed between 1 and 16.
What if we use a calculator?
Those who are naturally intelligent gave their opinion on the spur of the moment. Others reached for their trusty calculator. However, not everyone reached the same conclusion, implying that even calculators give different results.
It turns out that politics isn’t the only subject that makes people feel compelled to express themselves. How about the pandemic, fake news or media literacy, religious liberty, and human rights?
We now see that this isn’t the only hot subject on the internet.
Trying to demonstrate intellect
According to psychologists, the vast number of people “fighting” over stuff like this equation is attributed to a need to prove their competence to the rest of the online world. That has nothing to do with the math equation alone, but rather with the society themselves.
Simply wasting time and effort
Academic Sian Beilock of the University of Chicago, makes a notable observation.
“These debates of who’s right and who’s wrong make people feel like jerks at the end once they realize they are investing too much time and energy convincing others why their answer is the best one.”
So, who is the wisest among us?
Additional realization
Beilock has more to say on the topic.
“Often people feel the most stressed when the audience is made up of people they know. It’s very painful to fall on your face in front of your friends and family.”
Another interesting piece of information!
Trying to work it out
Directly, when looking at this math equation, the majority of the people on the internet decided that the number inside the parenthesis should be calculated first. Okay, but the issue occurs when they must choose between division and multiplication as the next move. The response varies depending on what people choose… hence the battle.
Is 16 the right answer?
Students are taught to use the most general standard convention for this form of the equation. Such that, operations are performed from left to right. As a rule, the division would come first, resulting in a response of 16. Is that really the case?
Adding two cents from a specialist
A professor of mathematics at Cornell said:
“No professional mathematician would ever write something so obviously ambiguous. We would insert parentheses to indicate our meaning and to signal whether the division should be carried out first or the multiplication.”
In conclusion
Depending on how this basic math equation is computed, there could be two different solutions. However, the online slanging match between people has nothing to do with math.
For whatever reason, certain people simply would argue.
They believe that knowing or at least trying to know the right answer raises their confidence rather than simply deciding to disagree. You have to embrace social media at its finest!
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