Hot take: 6÷2(1+2) is not ambiguous, and there is one correct answer
The answer to this internet-breaking question is 9, not 1. End of debate.
A couple of weeks ago, I got sucked into an online argument in a YouTube comment section. The video features a mathematician from Australia, Eddie Woo, answering the question that goes viral at least every year: What is 6÷2(1+2)?
I wrote a comment on the video where I shared my reasoning for why the answer is what it is, and I came back later to find over 100 replies of people arguing with each other or smugly saying I’m wrong.
This problem is the epitome of the internet. People just love to argue with each other online. I’ll admit, I’m one of those people because I’m writing this to inform everyone that the answer to 6÷2(1+2) is…
9
Wait, it’s not ambiguous?
I know I said it’s not ambiguous in my headline, but that’s not the whole story. The problem is certainly not clearly written, and nobody would use the division symbol ÷ anytime after high school algebra, at least.
The problem would either be written as (6/2)(1+2) or 6/(2(1+2)), the answers being 9 and 1, respectively.
