# Math Help - algebra questions

1. ## algebra questions

Hello looking for some help recently wrote a test and it had questions something like this on it.

-3m (-1)
-1 = -1

I am just wondering what kind of algebra it was or even if you can help me solve a problem like this it would be a extremely huge help. Thanks

2. Are you sure with that? A fraction with -1 = -1 as denominator? I don't think that's possible for an equation.

Nah, that doesn't make any sense. Did you mean :

$\frac{\ {-3m}(-1)}{-1} = -1$

That is easy to solve, it is basic algebra.

4. Sorry I don't remember the question exactly I was just throwing something out there. I am not very good in math so this is not to basic for me.

What do you have to do to solve this equation do you have to break down the left side before it will look like a normal algebra question. After that I am OK

5. hi "dre954"
if the question was like what "Becterius" wrote , $\frac{-3m(-1)}{-1}=-1$,how would u solve for $m$ ?

6. It is not the questions at hand that I care about I am wondering in what order do you use to solve a question like those ones.
I don't even know where to start with a question like that.

Thanks

7. you should know how to solve equations with one variable.

8. Originally Posted by Raoh
you should know how to solve equations with one variable.
That's what he is asking help for, though... so I think we should help him instead of say that he should know it

$\frac{-3m(-1)}{-1} = -1$

We can see that both the numerator and the denominator have a factor of -1 in them, so we can reduce it to get:

$\frac{-3m}{1} = -1 \Rightarrow -3m = -1$

Now, we want to isolate m (we're looking for a value of m that makes the equation true), so we divide by -3, which is the coefficient of m, and get:

$m = \frac{-1}{-3} = \frac{1}{3} \Rightarrow \boxed{m=\frac{1}{3}}$

$\frac{\ {-3m}(-1)}{-1} = -1$

$\frac{\ 3m}{-1} = -1$

$\frac{\ {-3m}}{1} = -1$

$\frac{\ {3m}}{1} = 1$

$3m = 1$

$m = \frac{\ 1}{3}$

You made a mistake by multiplying the top member of the fraction, and by dividing m by 3 (inattention I guess).

10. Originally Posted by Bacterius

$\frac{\ {-3m}(-1)}{-1} = -1$

$\frac{\ 3m}{-1} = -1$

$\frac{\ {-3m}}{1} = -1$

$\frac{\ {3m}}{1} = 1$

$3m = 1$

$m = \frac{\ 1}{3}$

You made a mistake by multiplying the top member of the fraction, and by dividing m by 3 (inattention I guess).
$\frac{-1}{-3} = 3$, obviously! :P

Um ... no :

$\frac{\ {-1}}{-3} = \frac{\ {1}}{3}$

You must be confused with the reciprocals and the opposite.

12. thank you very much defunkt makes a little bit more sense now.

13. Originally Posted by Bacterius
Um ... no :

$\frac{\ {-1}}{-3} = \frac{\ {1}}{3}$

You must be confused with the reciprocals and the opposite.
I was joking

In my initial post I wrote $...=\frac{-1}{-3}=3$ which is obviously wrong... :P

14. Originally Posted by dre954
Hello looking for some help recently wrote a test and it had questions something like this on it.

-3m (-1)
-1 = -1

I am just wondering what kind of algebra it was or even if you can help me solve a problem like this it would be a extremely huge help. Thanks
I would interpret this as $\frac{-3m}{-1}= \frac{-1}{-1}$ of course, that simply reduces to [tex]\frac{3m}{1}= 1[tex] so it is really 3m= 1. Divide both sides of the equation by 3 to solve for m.