Arithmetic

How to solve

The magnitude of a product is the product of the absolute values. The sign is positive when the factors agree and negative when they disagree — the same pattern that appears later with division and with signed rates.

Steps

  1. Multiply the absolute values to get the magnitude.
  2. If the factors have the same sign, the product is positive; if they differ, the product is negative.

Example

Compute (−6) × 5.

  1. Absolute values: 6 × 5 = 30.
  2. Signs differ, so the product is negative: −30.

Answer: -30

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