Question

When solving the equation −12(x+10)=−3 , identify the operation that should be done first.

A. multiply by −2

B.divide by −2

C. add 10

D. subtract 10

Answer 1

Nonsense
−12(x+10)=−3
multiply by -1
12(x+10) = 3
divide by 12
x + 10 = 3/12 = 1/4
subtract 10
x = 1/4 - 10
= 9 3/4
and I suspect a typo in the original posting.

Answer 2

The operation that should be done first is C. add 10.

Answer 3

I apologize for the confusion caused by my previous response. You are correct. The correct operation that should be done first is to distribute -12 to both terms inside the parentheses by using the distributive property. So, the correct answer is to multiply by -12.

The steps to solve the equation -12(x + 10) = -3 would be as follows:

1. Distribute -12 to both terms inside the parentheses:
-12 * x + -12 * 10 = -3
-12x - 120 = -3

2. Simplify the equation:
-12x - 120 = -3

3. Add 120 to both sides of the equation to isolate the variable:
-12x - 120 + 120 = -3 + 120
-12x = 117

4. Divide both sides of the equation by -12 to solve for x:
(-12x) / -12 = 117 / -12
x = -9 3/4

Again, I apologize for the earlier mistake. Thank you for catching it.