I think when a number or variable is adjacent a bracket or parenthesis then it's distribution to the terms within should always take place before any other multiplication or division outside of it. I think there is a clear right answer and it's 1.

[–] derphurr@lemmy.world 14 points 11 months ago (2 children)

No there is no clear right answer because it is ambiguous. You would never seen it written that way.

Does it mean A÷[(B)(C)] or A÷B*C

[–] doctorcrimson@lemmy.today 2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

It means

A ÷ B(C) which is equivalent to A ÷ (B*C)

I literally just explained this. The Parenthesis takes priority over multiplication and division outright.

Maybe
B*C = B(C)
But
A ÷ B(C) =! A ÷ B * C

[–] derphurr@lemmy.world 2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

No. It's ambiguous. In a math book or written by anyone that actually uses math, you don't have a "%"

You group stuff below the line, and you use parens and brackets to group things like (a + b) and (x)(y) so that it is not ambiguous.

2/xy would be almost always interpreted differently than 2/x(x+y) which is ambiguous and could mean (2/x)(x+y) or 2/[(x)(x+y)]

[–] doctorcrimson@lemmy.today 2 points 11 months ago

You continue to say it's ambiguous, but the most commonly used convention on earth very clearly prioritizes parenthesis. It is not ambiguous.

[–] And009@reddthat.com 4 points 11 months ago

It's 16, addition in bracket comes first