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THE EQUATION WAS POSTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND HAS CAUSED QUITE A STIR. 13:50, 01 Jun 2025 Do you fancy yourself as a bit of a maths whizz? Do you find equations easy and are you fearless with
fractions? Well, we've found a mind-bending maths question that is causing a bit of an uproar online. What seems to be a simple sum has divided social media - as no one can agree on the
answer. Puzzles like this are great for keeping your mind sharp. Brainteasers can test your mental abilities and force you to think outside the box. So taking on these challenges regularly
can improve your cognitive comprehension and help focus your brain for the travails of life. Though this baffling question might push you to your limit - if you can't understand how so
many other people got a different answer from you. Even those who pride themselves on their arithmetic skills have been left scratching their heads over this test. So, do you think you can
crack it? Article continues below Shared on Threads in July last year, the puzzle reads: "Divide 40 by 1/2 and add 15. What did you get?" It has racked up hundreds of thousands of
views in the 10 months since being posted, and attracted over 1,000 comments from people giving their answer. You might be tempted to solve the conundrum by dividing 40 by or 0.5, which
would give you 80. Once you add 15 to that, you're left with 95. Or, you - like some others - might interpret the question as asking you to divide 40 by its own half, which is 20 and
would leave you with 2. Adding 15, you'd end up with an answer of 17. Others have read it as just halving 40, which would give you 20. Once you add the 15, your total would be 35.
Because the equation is so open to interpretation, it's as much about semantics as it is mathematics. One person in the comments said: "I see how the question can get y'all to
think 35, it almost got me. But, to divide a fraction, remember you need to flip into the reciprocal. "Once you have your reciprocal, the order of operations changes to multiplication.
40 divided by 1/2=80 + 15 = 95. This is slightly easier to remember than dividing by 0.5!" Another responded: "First thought: 40/20=2+15=17, Second thought: 40/2=20+15=35, Third
thought: 40/.5=80+15=95. All answers are correct just depends on how u think." But some insisted the solution was more clear-cut than others were making out. A commenter asserted:
"It's not a poorly written question, it's a poorly READ question." What did you end up with: 95, 35, or 17? Or was it something else entirely? JOIN THE DAILY RECORD
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the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. If you enjoyed this tricky teaser, then you might fancy taking on a
few of our other offerings. With excitement for the new Harry Potter TV series building after the three main actors were announced, why not try our quiz on the Boy Who Lived? Do you enjoy a
pint or two in your favourite pub from time to time? Prove your beer knowledge by acing our ultimate quiz for lager lovers. Or how about taking on the world's shortest IQ test, which
has a pass rate of only 17 per cent? And if you really want to show off, you could try to ace the 10-question quiz that just 1 per cent of Brits get full marks in. Article continues below If
that one seems a bit too much for you, what about seeing if you're smarter than a 10-year-old? Take our 15-question quiz meant for primary school kids and see how you manage.