Quote:
Originally Posted by svandamme
Pete, what rule says that the brackets apply to what's outside of the bracket?
Can you show me something that backs up your way of doing it?
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So the equation , in any case, never was poorly written in a strict mathematical sense.
It was written in a way that leaves it prone for incorrect interpretation of the order of operations... The incorrect interpreation is human error, it's not mathematical.
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Note that I NEVER said anything about "my" way of doing anything, I am firmly in the 288 and 17 camps. However, I am pointing out that it's ambiguous, which is obvious by the volume of opinions, and ultimately is really the point of this whole thing, much more so than the number you come up.
The bracket priority thing is listed in the Order of Operations link someone else posted earlier on this page. It's just another example of why Google =/= research.
As far as whether any of this is human error, it's more of a philosophical discussion. If what you say is misinterpreted by the listener, is that your fault or his? Does the answer depend on how clear you were? What exactly is clear "enough"? Why do things we consider to be objective vary in meaning by listener, education, culture, region or language? If something as simple as putting in one more set of parentheses removes the ambiguity, isn't that a fault in the way the equation is written?