# Totally Pointless, but I need a Mathmatician

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/totally-pointless-but-i-need-a-mathmatician/746252>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [February 16, 2016, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/totally-pointless-but-i-need-a-mathmatician/746252 "2016-02-16T08:24:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\
**Post date:** [February 18, 2016, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/totally-pointless-but-i-need-a-mathmatician/746252/21 "2016-02-18T09:29:12Z")

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> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#):
>
> [Previous thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=664154). Plus I’m sure we’ve had similar threads about similar “facebook math controversies.”

Huh, missed that thread, aaand I don’t do facebook either. I can’t remember at the moment why my wife brought this particular instance to my attention.

> [@Rigamarole](#):
>
> Well, it’s not like it’s a one-off thing you learn once and then move on. It’s a very fundamental part of basic arithmetic, and literally **all** math anyone will ever do in school past the 2nd or 3rd grade relies on knowing the correct order of operations. You simply cannot do any sort of math properly without knowing it.
> 
> The fact that anyone would be passing something so basic around FB as a “tricky” sort of problem is incredibly alarming. If those same people were also able to pass middle school (and God forbid anything beyond that), then our educational system has really–spectacularly and miserably–failed.

Like I said, it was pretty far back, the last time I took a math class. I never really had a problem with math, it was easy enough, I was just too stupidly lazy to do more than just enough to sqeek by for high school graduation requirements. And really I don’t really use more than basic math and estimation for quick and dirty stuff and usually have instruments and whatnot for the more precise stuff these days.

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**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\
**Post date:** [February 20, 2016, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/totally-pointless-but-i-need-a-mathmatician/746252/22 "2016-02-20T09:11:59Z")

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This is why we should all do our arithmetic in Reverse Polish notation.

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [February 20, 2016, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/totally-pointless-but-i-need-a-mathmatician/746252/23 "2016-02-20T16:53:23Z")

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```auto

facebook: 6-1*0+2/2=?
RPN: 6,2,2/+1,0*- [using "," for "enter"]
APL: +/6,(2/2),-1*0 [vector style]
APL: 6+(2/2)-1/0 [scalar style]

```

😃

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [February 20, 2016, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/totally-pointless-but-i-need-a-mathmatician/746252/24 "2016-02-20T17:01:18Z")

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Ignore previous post. I edited it into stupidity then ran out of time. Try this instead:

```auto

facebook: 6-1*0+2/2=?
RPN: 6,2,2/+1,0*- [using "," for "enter"]
APL: +/6,(-(1x0)),2/2 [vector style, obvious code, "x" for multiply operator]
APL: +/6,(2/2),-1x0 [vector style, least characters, "x" for multiply operator]
APL: 6+(2/2)-1x0 [scalar style, "x" for multiply operator]

```

😃

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