In algebra, letters are used when numbers are not known. Algebraic terms, such as \(2s\) or \(8y\), leave the multiplication signs out. So rather than \(2 \times s\), write \(2s\), and rather than \(8 ...

Parsing algebraic expressions is always a pain. If you need to compute, say, 2+4*2, the answer should be the same as (2 + (4 *2)), not ((2 + 4) * 2) — in other words, the right answer is 10, not 12.

Algebra is a branch of mathematics dealing with symbols and the rules for manipulating those symbols. In elementary algebra, those symbols (today written as Latin and Greek letters) represent ...

Students of Grade 7 were given a test followed by individual interviews; at the end of Grade 8 the same students were subject to an analogous test and interviews. Each student had to simplify certain ...

Courtney Gibbons is affiliated with the Association for Women in Mathematics and the American Mathematical Society. You might remember learning about the quadratic formula to figure out the solutions ...