Subtracting integers is a common task in various real-world situations. Here are some examples:
-
Financial Transactions: When managing a budget or finances, you might subtract expenses from income. For instance, if you have $500 and you spend $150, you would calculate your remaining balance as $500 - $150 = $350.
-
Temperature Changes: If the temperature today is 10 degrees Celsius and it drops to -5 degrees Celsius, you can represent this as 10 - (-5) = 10 + 5 = 15 degrees of temperature drop.
-
Elevation Changes: In geography, if you start at sea level (0 feet) and move to a mountain that is 3000 feet above sea level, then move down to a valley that is 500 feet below sea level, you can calculate the change in elevation. Starting elevation is 0 feet, ending elevation at -500 feet means change is 0 - (-500) = 500 feet drop.
-
Bank Account Balances: If you have $200 in your bank account and withdraw $300, the account goes negative. You would calculate this as $200 - $300 = -$100, indicating an overdraft.
-
Sports Scores: In a basketball game, if Team A scores 90 points and Team B scores 75 points, you can find the score difference by subtracting the scores: 90 - 75 = 15 points.
-
Inventory Management: If a store has 150 items in stock and sells 47, you can determine how many items remain: 150 - 47 = 103 items left.
-
Time Calculation: If a movie starts at 5 PM and is 2 hours long, to find out when it ends, you subtract the duration from 5 PM. If you think of 5 PM as 17:00 in a 24-hour clock, then 17:00 - 2:00 = 15:00 (or 3 PM).
-
Temperature Adjustments: If a recipe requires baking at 375°F but your oven is set at 350°F, you might think of the difference in degrees: 375 - 350 = 25°F adjustment needed.
These examples illustrate how subtraction of integers is essential for practical decision-making and understanding various situations in daily life.