>>>>>

>>>>>-24/4(-2)
>>>>>

>>>>>Is it:
>>>>>

>>>>>-6(-2) = 12
>>>>>

>>>>>Or is it:
>>>>>

>>>>>-24/-8 = 3
>>>>>

>>>>
>>>>See Agnes' reply :o)
>>>
>>>This is what gets me. I've gotten different answer from technical people who are good at math. How am I supposed to help an 11-year old understand the rules? After reading all the replies, I still don't know if the answer is 12 or 3.
>>
>>It's 12. I am surprised everyone didn't know this.
>
>You wrong. left-to-right rule correct for just computer programming languages. There is should be an extra paranthesis.

No. There is a rule for math, and that is that if there are no parentheses, left to right is correct for operations that have equal precedence. Yes, one should put in the parens to make it more clear, but they are not required. The rule applies.