When multiplying signed numbers count the number of negative signs. If there are and odd number of of negative signs, the product is positive.true false
True
True.
When multiplying signed numbers, follow these steps:
1. Count the number of negative signs in the numbers you are multiplying.
2. If the count is an odd number, the product will be negative.
3. If the count is an even number (including 0), the product will be positive.
The statement is true: When multiplying signed numbers, if there are an odd number of negative signs, the product is positive.
To understand why, let's break it down:
When multiplying two numbers, there are three possible scenarios:
1. both numbers are positive,
2. one of the numbers is positive and the other is negative,
3. both numbers are negative.
In the first scenario, where both numbers are positive, the product is positive regardless of the number of negative signs involved.
In the second scenario, where one of the numbers is positive and the other is negative, the negative sign in front of one of the numbers indicates the opposite sign. As a result, the product is negative.
In the third scenario, where both numbers are negative, we need to consider the number of negative signs involved.
If the number of negative signs is even, such as (-2) * (-3), then when multiplying two negative numbers, the result is positive: (-2) * (-3) = 6.
If the number of negative signs is odd, such as (-2) * (-3) * (-4), then when multiplying three negative numbers, the result is negative: (-2) * (-3) * (-4) = -24.
So, to summarize, if there is an odd number of negative signs when multiplying signed numbers, the product will be positive.