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As stupid as this is, I don't know.
$$-3(5-7)^2$$
Multiply by $-3$ or square it first?

JMoravitz
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  • The exponent should be handled first, but this is again another example of sloppy notation that no self-respecting mathematician would use. – Rushabh Mehta Jan 12 '20 at 19:41
  • Here... some extra parentheses for ya... $-3(5-7)^2 = (-3)\cdot ((5-7)^2)$. You have $-3(5-7)^2 = -3(-2)^2 = (-3)\cdot 4 = -12$ – JMoravitz Jan 12 '20 at 19:43
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    You can see here one of the greatest mathematicians of our time using that notation. You can judge yourself if the claim from a random nobody on the Internet that it is sloppy is true or not. – MoonLightSyzygy Jan 12 '20 at 20:26

1 Answers1

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Hint: Use the mnenomic PEMDAS (Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally) for order of operations: Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, and Subtraction.

In your case, take care of items inside the parenthesis first ($5-7 = -2$), then square ($-2^2 = 4$) and finally multiply ($-3 \cdot 4 = -12$).

bjcolby15
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