Question

Which expression(s) have positive values? Choose

Answer 1

9514 1404 393

Answer:

  2. -(-73) is positive

Step-by-step explanation:

It's not too difficult, but you can get wrapped around the axle. Here are the rules:

• the opposite of a positive number is a negative number
• the opposite of a negative number is a positive number

That is, turning a number to its opposite is just changing its sign.

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If you layer these rules, you find ...

  the opposite of (the opposite of a positive number) is a positive number

The first rule tells you the statement in parentheses is a negative number, and the second rule tell you its opposite is a positive number.

That is, a double opposite gets you back where you started. In short, any even number of minus signs cancel each other.

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The numbers you have listed here* are ...

1. -730 (negative)
2. -(-73) = 73 (positive)
3. -75 (negative)
4. -(-(-701)) = -701 (negative)

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* We say "listed here" because we're seeing mismatched parentheses and brackets, so we know something is missing. We're going by the signs and numbers that we do see. YMMV