Adele D.

asked • 12/28/16

When did the Order of Operations come into common usage?

I do not remember this term - "order of operations" - and I'm a senior.   When did this come into common usage?

Stephen M.

tutor
I don't know the history of the term, but I learned it about 20 years ago in middle school (although I didn't learn the PEMDAS pneumonic until later).  I apologize on behalf of your educators if you haven't heard it before.  It's fairly critical to communicating math correctly.  Do you at least understand it now?
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12/28/16

Adele D.

hmmm....I was in grammar school some 60 years ago. Does anyone remember the "order of operations" that far back?
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12/29/16

Arturo O.

I learned the order of operations in middle school (40+ years ago), but I never heard the acronym PEMDAS until recently.
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12/29/16

Kenneth S.

Mnemonic -- a device by which to remember something.
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12/29/16

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