I am helping my daughter with her algebra and we came across a symbol neither of us has seen before. She is solving two sided equations. For this problem, I do see it set up in the book, but it is related to geometry, which they have not covered. She says that they never covered this. This is what the teacher gave her. All I need to know is how to set it up.

(4x-2)[a huge X](5x-3)

These are on one side of the X and the other. Not one the top and bottom.

I'll try to make a sketch and put it up.

the big X just means multiplication most likely...it's made bigger to diffrentiate it from the variable x in 4x-2 and 5x-3.

soyou just multiply (4x-2)X(5x-3) using the FOIL method. since i can't see the way it's shown in the book, i'm thinking this is how it is.

I see what you are saying, but that isn't it. It has something to do with setting one side equal to another. She has not started distribution that complicated yet. They still have her at 2(x+3). Right now, they are solving (for x) with two sided equations.

When I say a big X, I mean bigger than what you have put. The X is so large that the (4x-2) fits into the left side of the X and the (5x-3) fits into the other side. I have a sketch of what it looks like, but i can't seem to get the add a link to work so I can show you. Just imagine the two within a large X shape.

I'm not sure if this may help, but it's worth a try.

4\1/2
 /3\ (imagine an "x")

If you meant something like (4x-2) = angle 4 and angle 2 = (5x-3) :

You can simply set up the equation as:
4x - 2 = 5x - 3
Since you know this is related to geometry, I can tell you the two angles are equal to each other because they are vertical angles. These are angles opposite of each other when two lines cross and share the same vertex.

If this method sufficed, "x" will equal to 1.

That actually makes sense. In the book, it mentioned something about angles, but I wasn't even thinking about opposite angles being equal. I did have her set the two equal to each other, and she came up with a realistic answer.

What you said makes perfect sense. I will explain it to her, and if she sees it again, then she will be able to solve it. :)

Thank you!

why are they making things so complicated

Based on your description, it seems like the symbol you are referring to is the multiplication symbol. In algebra, the multiplication of two or more quantities is often represented using the juxtaposition of those quantities. So, the expression (4x-2)(5x-3) indicates the multiplication of (4x-2) and (5x-3).

To set it up, you can use the distributive property of multiplication over addition. Here's how you can expand the expression:

1. Start by multiplying the first term in the left parenthesis by each term in the right parenthesis:
(4x) x (5x) = 20x^2
(4x) x (-3) = -12x

2. Then, multiply the second term in the left parenthesis by each term in the right parenthesis:
(-2) x (5x) = -10x
(-2) x (-3) = 6

3. Finally, combine the like terms obtained in the previous steps to simplify the expression:
20x^2 - 12x - 10x + 6

The resulting expression, after combining like terms, would be:
20x^2 - 22x + 6

So, the set up for the expression (4x-2)(5x-3) would be:
(4x-2)(5x-3) = 20x^2 - 22x + 6