Posted on 04/15/2014 3:31:11 PM PDT by ru4liberty
Don't laugh at us old folk. Our data bases are full, so we can't retain what we don't use like we once could.
My friend and I need some help from some of you mathematically inclined FReepers.
Problem:
Mike's sales goal last year was $90,071. His employer increased it to $124,111 this year. What percentage of increase is this, and how did you arrive at the answer?
Thanking y'all in advance. :)
A more general rule:
Subtract the initial number by the new number, and multiply the answer by 100.
If the result is negative, it's a decrease; if not, it's an increase.
38%
1-($90,071/$124,111)
Really you are asking this question?
>>Subtract the initial number by the new number, and multiply the answer by 100.
If the result is negative, it’s a decrease; if not, it’s an increase.<<
New Math
Tom Lehrer
“Some of you who have small children may have perhaps been put in the
embarrassing position of being unable to do your child’s arithmetic homework
because of the current revolution in mathematics teaching known as the New
Math. So as a public service here tonight I thought I would offer a brief
lesson in the New Math. Tonight we’re going to cover subtraction. This is the
first room I’ve worked for a while that didn’t have a blackboard so we will
have to make due with more primitive visual aids, as they say in the “ed biz.”
Consider the following subtraction problem, which I will put up here: 342 -
173.
Now remember how we used to do that. three from two is nine; carry the one, and
if you’re under 35 or went to a private school you say seven from three is six,
but if you’re over 35 and went to a public school you say eight from four is
six; carry the one so we have 169, but in the new approach, as you know, the
important thing is to understand what you’re doing rather than to get the right
answer. Here’s how they do it now.
You can’t take three from two,
Two is less than three,
So you look at the four in the tens place.
Now that’s really four tens,
So you make it three tens,
Regroup, and you change a ten to ten ones,
And you add them to the two and get twelve,
And you take away three, that’s nine.
Is that clear?
Now instead of four in the tens place
You’ve got three,
‘Cause you added one,
That is to say, ten, to the two,
But you can’t take seven from three,
So you look in the hundreds place.
From the three you then use one
To make ten ones...
(And you know why four plus minus one
Plus ten is fourteen minus one?
‘Cause addition is commutative, right.)
And so you have thirteen tens,
And you take away seven,
And that leaves five...
Well, six actually.
But the idea is the important thing.
Now go back to the hundreds place,
And you’re left with two.
And you take away one from two,
And that leaves...?
Everybody get one?
Not bad for the first day!
Hooray for new math,
New-hoo-hoo-math,
It won’t do you a bit of good to review math.
It’s so simple,
So very simple,
That only a child can do it!
Now that actually is not the answer that I had in mind, because the book that I
got this problem out of wants you to do it in base eight. But don’t panic. Base
eight is just like base ten really - if you’re missing two fingers. Shall we
have a go at it? Hang on.
You can’t take three from two,
Two is less than three,
So you look at the four in the eights place.
Now that’s really four eights,
So you make it three eights,
Regroup, and you change an eight to eight ones,
And you add them to the two,
and you get one-two base eight,
Which is ten base ten,
And you take away three, that’s seven. Ok?
Now instead of four in the eights place
You’ve got three,
‘Cause you added one,
That is to say, eight, to the two,
But you can’t take seven from three,
So you look at the sixty-fours.
“Sixty-four? How did sixty-four get into it?” I hear you cry.
Well, sixty-four is eight squared, don’t you see?
(Well, you ask a silly question, and you get a silly answer.)
From the three you then use one
To make eight ones,
And you add those ones to the three,
And you get one-three base eight,
Or, in other words,
In base ten you have eleven,
And you take away seven,
And seven from eleven is four.
Now go back to the sixty-fours,
And you’re left with two,
And you take away one from two,
And that leaves...?
Now, let’s not always see the same hands.
One, that’s right!
Whoever got one can stay after the show and clean the erasers.
Hooray for new math,
New-hoo-hoo-math,
It won’t do you a bit of good to review math.
It’s so simple,
So very simple,
That only a child can do it!
Come back tomorrow night. We’re gonna do fractions.
Now I’ve often thought I’d like to write a mathematics text book someday because I have
a title that I know will sell a million copies. I’m gonna call it Tropic Of
Calculus.”
I may have forgotten to mention that these are monthly goals, not yearly. Still, Texas would be glad to have you. I’m sure we could find a job you’d like, and we do need more conservatives moving here since Obungler and the ‘rats have targeted Texas in an attempt to turn it blue.
Speaking of (and full disclosure: I am not mathematically -inclined), I used to sell $50M of steel per year . . . but if some sales manager gave me that target, I would laugh in his face. I went through a number of sales/marketing managers in my time.
37.79%
(124111-90071)/90071
Mike’s employer screwed up on the plan last year.
All of these follow the same rules
1. Subtract to find the difference between the original number and the "new" number
2. Divide that difference from (1) by the original number. You'll get a decimal.
3. Move the decimal point two spaces to the right and put in the percentage sign after that number.
((Last Goal - First Goal)/(First Goal)) * 100.
Calculate the difference between goals. Divide that result by the first goal. Then multiply the result by 100.
Yes, very good!
But you have to tell the original poster that the reason you must subtract 1 from the quotient to obtain the percentage increase is because the dividend is 1 + the percentage increase of the divisor.
Blue.
If you're looking for a "percentage change" from Condition A to Condition B, always use Condition A (the starting point) as the denominator in the calculation.
“The lower number” is condition A, so what’s your point?Don't be confused by the posters who tell you to "divide by the lower number."
That's the right answer in this case, but not in every case.It would always be right provided that the change was an increase. Alberta's Child’s formulation also works when the change is a decrease.But “subtract the smaller number from the larger” yields a similar, but not correct result in that case. The result will be similar but not correct, and will also of the wrong sign - positive, when it should be negative.
That does sound like a ridiculous increase. Using some other information, my friend has more pieces to add to the puzzle. He’s now convinced that 124 is a typo and is supposed to be 104.
15.5% is more reasonable than 38%.
Man! My pet math peeve is evident.
Start at 9 increase to 12.
9 is 3x3
12 is 4x3
Increase is a “3”
So...the “man” is screwing you by an extra third, comrade!
Workers of the weird...UNTIE!
Exactly!
DING DING DING!
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