When solving equations the order in which the operations are performed is critical.
The general order of operations is:
P = Parentheses
E = Exponents
M = Multiplication
D = Division
A = Addition
S = Subtraction
To remember the acronym (PEMDAS) I repeat the following sentence Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally.
Mr. Arch Brooks, Software Engineer, Brooks Computing Systems, LLC authored this article.