Latest news with #arithmetic
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Seems Like The President Who Brags About How Smart He Is Cannot Do Arithmetic
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly bragged about how smart he is, apparently has trouble with basic arithmetic, having asserted a mystifying lie about drug prices several times now. 'You know, we've cut drug prices by 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500%. I don't mean 50%, I mean 1400, 1500%,' he told reporters Sunday before boarding Air Force One to return to the White House following another weekend of golf at his New Jersey course. He had made the same false claim 12 days earlier at a reception for Republican members of Congress: 'We're going to get the drug prices down — not 30 or 40%, which would be great, not 50 or 60. No, we're going to get them down 1000%, 600%, 500%, 1500%.' The declaration, of course, is absurd on its face. A product becomes free if the sale price is lowered by 100%. To reduce the cost of a prescription drug beyond that implies that the customer would actually receive a rebate to take the medication off the pharmacy's hands. Trump's '1500%' claim would mean that a patient would receive a prescription that normally costs $100 for nothing, along with $1,400 in cash. White House press aides did not respond to HuffPost's queries about what Trump might have meant. 'He's beyond unusual. And that I've never met a person so intellectually and emotionally — because there is no compensation — limited,' said Charles Leerhsen, the co-author of Trump's 1990 book 'Surviving at the Top,' who has been warning about Trump's innumeracy and, more generally, his ignorance, since Trump began his first run for president in 2015. 'And that's why some people mistake his idiocy for 'chess on three levels,'' Leerhsen continued, 'because, being unable to understand him, and feeling that nobody could be as dumb as he seems, they arrive at the conclusion that he is actually smarter than they are.' Over the years, Trump has repeatedly boasted about how intelligent he is, offering as proof the fact that his uncle taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 'Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart,' Trump wrote in a 2018 social media post. Leerhsen said Trump's apparent inability to understand how percentages work helps explain his business failures, such as massively overpaying for the Plaza Hotel in New York City and bankrupting casinos in Atlantic City. 'That's exactly why those things happened. He's not one of those people who compensates for being bad at one thing — say, words — by being good at another — say, numbers,' he said. In reality, Trump has actually undone his predecessor Joe Biden's efforts to reduce prescription prices. On his first day in office, Trump rescinded a long list of Biden's executive orders, including those reducing drug prices for enrollees of Medicare and Medicaid. Last week, Trump posted a letter on social media that he said he had sent to Eli Lilly and Company demanding that it charge its American customers the low prices it charges elsewhere in the world. He then posted letters to 16 other major pharmaceutical companies. 'If you refuse to step up, we will deploy every tool in our arsenal to protect American families from continued abusive drug pricing practices,' Trump wrote. He also complained that industry proposals to lower prices, as he had demanded in a May 12 executive order, had only 'promised more of the same: shifting blame and requesting policy changes that would result in billions of dollars in handouts to industry.' Related... FDA Names Former Pharmaceutical Executive To Oversee U.S. Drug Program U.S. Consumer Prices Increase As Expected In June Everyday Essentials To Buy Now Before Tariffs Make Them More Expensive
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
'Simple' equation puts long-forgotten math lessons to the test. Can you solve it in 30 seconds or less?
Let's face it: numbers, for many of us, just don't add up. And unless math is part of your day job, you can generally avoid messing with nasty sums when you graduate from school. Those complicated equations are easily forgotten when a teacher's not breathing down your neck. With calculators, even simple multiplication can be swerved - until now. See if you can recall back to the days of elementary arithmetic and solve this compound sum using only your brain. Better yet, do it in 30 seconds or less. Bholanath Dutta posted this sum on X and it seemed to leave people stumped for even longer. What's the answer to 70 ÷ 5 - 5 x 3? How did you do? If you remembered to refer to the mathematical acronym PEMDAS, you're on the right track. PEMDAS stands for parentheses, exponents, multiplication and division, and addition and subtraction. It demonstrates the right order in which to solve a math equation like this one. Using PEMDAS, we know to solve for multiplication and division in this problem first. 70÷5=14 and... 5x3=15 Now the remaining problem is: 14-15=-1 If -1 was your answer, then you're correct. If not, there are a few ways you could have accidentally turned the solution on its head. Solving the problem left to right is a common one. 70÷5=14 14-5=9 9x3=27 In this instance, it can be helpful to picture parenthesis around the division and multiplication problems. That way you don't forget to solve them first. Maybe you started with subtraction in the middle or even took the equation from right to left. Either way you're in good company. People in Bholanath Dutta's comment section came up with 27, 21, and even 33. But at least now, the next time you decide to tease your brain, you certainly won't forget PEMDAS.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Science
- Daily Mail
Simple-looking math equation sees people guess some very topsy-turvy answers - can you solve it in 30 seconds?
Unless you do it in your day to day job, math can be very easy to avoid once you graduate from school. Suddenly those long, complicated equations that your math teacher swore would be trivial are so easily forgotten. Calculators are just a tap or two away and you no longer have to concern yourself with solving complex formulas or even simple multiplication off of the top of your head. Well, until now. See if you can recall back to the days of elementary arithmetic and solve this compound sum using only your brain. Better yet, do it in 30 seconds or less. Bholanath Dutta posted this sum on X and it seemed to leave people stumped for even longer. What's the answer to 70 ÷ 5 - 5 x 3? How did you do? If you remembered to refer to the mathematical acronym PEMDAS, you're on the right track. PEMDAS stands for parentheses, exponents, multiplication and division, and addition and subtraction. It demonstrates the right order in which to solve a math equation like this one. Using PEMDAS, we know to solve for multiplication and division in this problem first. 70÷5=14 and... 5x3=15 Now the remaining problem is: 14-15=-1 If -1 was your answer, then you're correct. If not, there are a few ways you could have accidentally turned the solution on its head. Solving the problem left to right is a common one. 70÷5=14 14-5=9 9x3=27 In this instance, it can be helpful to picture parenthesis around the division and multiplication problems. That way you don't forget to solve them first. Maybe you started with subtraction in the middle or even took the equation from right to left. Either way you're in good company. People in Bholanath Dutta's comment section came up with 27, 21, and even 33. But at least now, the next time you decide to tease your brain, you certainly won't forget PEMDAS.
Daily Mail
07-07-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Grade school sum looks easy but leaves people confused - can you solve it?
A grade school arithmetic problem has left people scratching their heads. The problem posted by @BholanathDutta on X read: 4+4x4+4 Before you jump into the deep end too quickly and try to find the solution, first remind yourself of simple math principles so you don't make a basic mistake. This sum is a simple lesson in mathematicians' favorite acronym: PEMDAS. PEMDAS is frequently taught as a way for mathletes to remember the correct order in which to solve compound math equations. It stands for Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, and Subtraction. There are no parentheses or exponents in this problem so multiplication comes first. It may feel unnatural to solve from the center, but give it a go and see if you can find the sum in 30 seconds or less. 4 x 4 = 16 With one step down, the problem reads: 4+16+4 From there, it's just simple addition: 4+16= 20 Now we have: 20+4 = 24 Were you able to solve it? There are a couple of easy errors that other wannabe mathematicians fell victim to while trying to get to the bottom of things. The first is solving the equation left to right, instead of implementing PEMDAS. 4+4=8 8 x 4 = 32 32 + 4 = 36 Another easy mistake to make is putting the addition first. By adding 4+4 on both sides of the equation first the simplified problem would become: 8 x 8 = 64 Unfortunately, this mixes up the reliable acronym PEMDAS and leaves the solution unsolved. How did you do? Were you able to rely on math principles learned decades ago or did you too fall victim to one of these easy errors?
Daily Mail
06-07-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Grade school sum looks easy but leaves people confused - can you solve it in 30 seconds?
A grade school math problem has once again stumped the internet. Social media user @BholanathDutta posted a sum on X, formerly Twitter, and the basic rules of elementary arithmetic have failed the masses. The problem read: 4+4x4+4 Before you jump into the deep end too quickly and try to find the solution in your head, it's best to remind yourself of simple math principles so you don't make a basic mistake. This sum is a simple lesson in mathematicians' favorite acronym: PEMDAS. PEMDAS is frequently taught as a way for up and coming mathletes to remember the correct order in which to solve compound math equations. It stands for Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, and then Subtraction. There are no parentheses or exponents so in this solution multiplication comes first. It may feel unnatural to solve from the center, but give it a go and see if you can find the sum in 30 seconds or less. 4 x 4 = 16 With one step down, the problem reads: 4+16+4 From there, it's just simple addition. 4+16= 20 Now we have: 20+4 = 24 Were you able to solve it? There are a couple of easy errors that other wannabe mathematicians fell victim to while trying to get to the bottom of things. The first is solving the equation left to right, instead of implementing PEMDAS. 4+4=8 8 x 4 = 32 32 + 4 = 36 Another easy mistake to make was putting the addition first. By adding 4+4 on both sides of the equation first the simplified problem would become: 8 x 8 = 64 Unfortunately, this completely mixes up the reliable acronym PEMDAS and leaves the solution unsolved. How did you do? Were you able to rely on math principles learned decades ago or did you too fall victim to one of these easy errors?
