Evaluate the expression a - 8c when a = -5 and c = 7.
Understand the Problem
The question is asking us to evaluate the expression a - 8c by substituting the given values of a = -5 and c = 7 into the expression.
Answer
$-61$
Answer for screen readers
The final answer is $-61$.
Steps to Solve
- Substitute the values of a and c into the expression
We start by replacing ( a ) and ( c ) with their given values: ( a = -5 ) and ( c = 7 ).
The expression becomes:
$$ -5 - 8(7) $$
- Calculate the multiplication
Next, we need to calculate ( 8(7) ):
$$ 8 \times 7 = 56 $$
So, the expression now updates to:
$$ -5 - 56 $$
- Perform the final subtraction
Now we perform the subtraction:
$$ -5 - 56 = -61 $$
The final answer is $-61$.
More Information
The expression $a - 8c$ evaluates the influence of both variables on the outcome. In this case, since $a$ is negative and $8c$ is positive, the overall result is more negative.
Tips
- Failing to properly multiply 8 and 7 before subtracting can lead to incorrect answers. Always perform multiplication before addition or subtraction in expressions.
- Not accounting for the negative sign in front of 5 could also lead to confusion.
AI-generated content may contain errors. Please verify critical information