We also would have accepted:
40.250
this post was submitted on 18 Oct 2025
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Both are wrong, correct answer is 39 5/4 (obsviously)
Having PTSD from dealing with mastering physics years ago which also happens to be a Pearson thing too.
This is from a Pearson online graded thing, if you don't happen to recognize it. It probably would have taken 161/4 (edited) as a correct answer as well (IMO 40 1/4 is ambiguous, improper).
The software is more than capable of determining that 40.25=40+1/4 so its not really excusable (unless its specifically trying to teach fractions for middle schoolers or something)
That said, A lot of my calc 3 homework (multi variable calculus) in college was run by Pearson, and while it wasn't perfect, the fact that it was autograded with multiple attempts allowed made learning the material easy. Immediate feedback is incredible.
Fuck Pearson though, honestly. This shit is expensive and it's still got noticeable flaws. Last Pearson course I took kept trying to get me to use their shitty AI and pay extra for shit. I'm a student, not a potential customer to shake down.
Did they force you to pay Pearson just to submit required coursework?
I remember that shit and it radicalized me against the textbook mafia
Speaking from a decade ago but Khan Academy's system(at the time called mastery, not sure what it is now) was leaps and bounds better for learning calculus.
Also I'm pretty sure this meme is from back then too.
I love Khan academy so much. I don't know how good it is nowadays, but it's one of the things that shaped my perspective on the internet as I was growing up alongside the changing web; Yes, there is all sorts of awfulness online, and so many complex harms, but there are also so many awesome learning resources and enthusiastic people who want to share their knowledge. Khan academy did a lot for democratising knowledge, and is a concrete answer in the discussion of "what might 'learning outside of the academy' look like?"
The key difference between Pearson's shitty maths thing and Khan academy's equivalent is that Khan academy was started by a dude who was genuinely interested in bringing learning materials to people, and exploring online teaching as a new medium. Pearson is a soulless entity that exists to wring money out of everything it can.
Well the system is just an improvement over examination based evaluation too. Doing 5 problems from a discrete concept correctly in a row is a far better proof of knowledge than one problem worth 20% of your grade.
41/4 is 10.25
Correct, but not what is shown in the OP.
The OP has 40*1/4 which is 10.
OP had an ambiguous notation. One that tends to be taught in schools as the way to present a 'proper fraction' (or perhaps compound fraction, i forget, it's not important) by factoring out the integer component.
Later on in schooling, one is discouraged from using the notation because of the entirely reasonable way of interpreting it that you've used when thinking algebraicly.
It's like that Facebook shit that uses the division operator. It's ambiguous, so there is no way to be authoritative in the interpretation.
I worked support for Pearson about 15 or so years ago and uh... yeah, fuck Pearson.
I agree in principal, but: 40 1/2 = 40/1 + 1/4 = 160/4 + 1/4 = 161/4
You right, I'm tired
Without seeing the question...
It's perfectly normal to require the answer to be given in fractions instead of decimals if the question is given in fractions.
That's absolutely stupid if you're talking about a number that can be represented exactly in both notations.
Unless the course or assignment is specifically about fractions.
At least I was thought to use the same format for results as the assignment.
It's reasonable to assume that this assignment wasn't specifically on fractions, based on the meme itself; the rage only makes sense in a world where they weren't instructed to present their answers in a particular format.
Online assessments can be pretty jarring because for paper assessments marked by a teacher, you're usually fine to present whatever format is most convenient. The exceptions include: if the question asked for you for a specific format; if you gave a rounded answer where it wasn't appropriate (e.g. giving the answer "1.57 (3s.f.)" instead of "π/2"); or rounding an answer to the wrong level, or not being clear about what level of rounding you've done.
Whilst it is possible that the online assessment specified what format answers should be in, I've seen plenty of assessments where it doesn't make that clear, and then is overly rigid in what it accepts. I've even seen assessments where I go "okay, I guess I shouldn't give my answer as a decimal", and then I give a fraction for the next answer, only to be told that the correct answer is what I said, but in decimal form. It would be logical that if in doubt, one should present answers in the same format as what the question itself uses, even if the question doesn't specify you should use a particular format. Unfortunately, even this is not a safe strategy. I cannot emphasise enough how shitty the Pearson online assessments are, and I am baffled at how they are able to continue existing when they're effectively scamming maths departments into paying for this trash.
Calculators can make decimal easy and fractions hard when doing it yourself fractions are much easier it's an anti-cheat of sorts
Edit: I'm getting a lot of flak for something explicitly stated in a text book, yeah some calculators can but they are less common especially in grade school and it could just be a carry over from time's when calculators couldn't, my point is that this isn't some random theory it's a real thing real text books have done.
Yeah... because you cant just calculate the decimal from fractions with a calculator...
Only if that requirement is explicitly stated in the question.
what is normal about that stupid requirement?
i played those stupid games and got my As but fuck do i not miss those online grade math sites
Calculators can make decimal easy and fractions hard when doing it yourself fractions are much easier it's an anti-cheat of sorts
Modern calculators can switch modes between decimal and fractions. It's pretty irrelevant.
Also, someone may do the problem themselves using any number of means that involve decimals. Or maybe they simply prefer to write in decimal. Either way, the program is simply wrong.
I heavily doubt this is the reason. It would fail so many honest users while catching a few cheaters. And the cheaters could easily avoid getting caught by using the correct mode on a decent calculator.
That's a stupid and miss interpretable notation
Yep, 40 x 1/4 is ten.
Who uses whole number with a fraction anyway?! This is either 40x(1/4) or 401/4 MADNESS!
It’s a very common notation in North American recipes.
- 3 1/4 cups of flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp baking soda
Etc!
Yea but even your example has a space. This one doesn't. And the other 2 are whole numbers.
duckduckgo ~~en passant~~ mixed fractions
I'm gonna go build my own math! With hookers and blackjack!
While it could be read as 40*(1/4), it actually means 40+1/4. 401/4 would be true madness.
The correct answer would be 10 right?
40 × 0.25 = 10
There is no plus in there and empty space turns into a multiplication by default.
No, that's a way to represent a fraction's integer part.
Depends on culture and level of education. For someone who comes from a culture where we use decimals, I'd interpret this in the math/physics class way, i.e. 10.
Yes, with no previous context or warning I would assume the same, but regardless, the notation exists.
Might be. I've never seen it used that way, though, I know that some people prefer parentheses around the fraction to the right of integers.
That said, even Wolframalpha appears to disagree, which I find mildly funny if what you say is true.
EDIT: Just realized something even more damning. If you input it into Wolframalpha using math input, it just assumes addition (lol). Yeah, I might have to read up on this.
Might be. I've never seen it used that way, though, I know that some people prefer parentheses around the fraction to the right of integers.
I learned at grade/primary school, it's useful as a teaching tool for fractions. Although, I do recall using something similar for partial fractions in college.
That said, even Wolframalpha appears to disagree, which I find mildly funny if what you say is true.
Yes, but no. That notation is the dumbest one ever. Everywhere else a juxtaposition implies multiplication, except for fractions with integers to the left.
is it just me who actually learnt mixed fractions/decimals in class?
I gave up on khan academy after having this happen enough times.