Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Cut one number in 1/2 and double the other for easy multiplication!




Have you wondered if there is a trick to multiplying 2 numbers, especially if one number is much larger than the other?  There is a neat trick that you can use every time, especially if one of the numbers has a factor of 2 multiplied several times.  The only skill you need to know is how to cut one number in 1/2 and double the other number.  You may need to repeat this step several times.

Let's take a quick look at a possible scenario.

Multiply 24 x 125.  No need for paper and pencil or a calculator on this one!  Check it out!
Step 1: Reduce 24 to 12 and Double 125 to 250.
Step 2: Reduce 12 to 6 and Double 250 to 500.
Step 3: Reduce 6 to 3 and Double 500 to 1,000.
We all know that 3 x 1,000 = 3,000.  That's correct!  3 x 1,000 = 24 x 125

Here's another one!

After a great month at the sales office, Sales Manager, Ronald agreed to pay each of his 16 employees a $750 bonus!  Let's see how easy this one will compute.
Step 1: Reduce 16 to 8 and Double $750 to $1,500.
Step 2: Reduce 8 to 4 and Double $1,500 to $3,000.
Step 3: Reduce 4 to 2 and Double $3,000 to $6,000.

Multiply 2 x $6,000 = $12,000.  That's right!  Ronald owes his employees $12,000 and they are so excited! 





















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