Question

Cynthia said that when you multiply three negative numbers the answer will be positive. Use these numbers to answer the questions: –8.5, –9, –1.7, –6.5, 3 (a) Is Cynthia’s statement always true, sometimes true, or always false? Write two equations to support your answer. (b) Pretend that you need to explain to a friend what happens when you multiply three negative numbers. (c) Cynthia changed her statement to say that when you multiply two negative numbers and a positive number the answer will be positive. Is Cynthia’s new statement always true, sometimes true, or always false? Write two equations to support your answer.

Answer 1

A) Never
B) -9 x -1.7 x -8.5 = -130.05
-6.5 x -9 x -1.7 = -99.45
C) When you multiply 2 negative numbers the answer will always be a positive. So when you multiply that number by the third number it will end up being a positive x a negative which will always be a negative.
D) Always true
-1 x -1 x 4 = 4
-5 x -2 x 3 = 30