Following are nine little math demons that plague all sorts of otherwise smart, capable folks like you. The good news is that they’re not as big and scary as you may think, and they can be dispelled more easily than you may have dared believe.Know the multiplication tableA sketchy knowledge of multiplication can really hold back an otherwise good math student.

To successfully study pre-algebra, understand that a specific order of operations needs to be applied. Also recognize some basic math principles, such as the ability to recognize and understand mathematical inequalities, place value, absolute value, and negation.Mathematical order of operationsThe rules for deciding the order to evaluate arithmetic expressions, no matter how complex, are called the order of operations.

A polyhedron is the three-dimensional equivalent of a polygon, which is a shape that has only straight sides. Similarly, a polyhedron is a solid that has only straight edges and flat faces (that is, faces that are polygons).The most common polyhedron is the cube. As you can see, a cube has 6 flat faces that are polygons — in this case, all of the faces are square — and 12 straight edges.

When the fractions that you want to add have different denominators, there are a few different ways you can do it. Add fractions the easy way At some point in your life, some teacher somewhere told you these golden words of wisdom: “You can’t add two fractions with different denominators.” Your teacher was wrong!

Even if fractions look different, they can actually represent the same amount; in other words, one of the fractions will have reduced terms compared to the other. You may need to reduce the terms of fractions to work with them in an equation.Reducing fractions to their lowest terms involves division. But because you can’t always divide, reducing takes some finesse.

A lot of percent problems turn out to be easy to solve when you give them a little thought. In many cases, just remember the connection between percents and fractions and you’re halfway home. Solve simple percent problems Some percents are easy to figure. Here are a few. Finding 100% of a number: Remember that 100% means the whole thing, so 100% of any number is simply the number itself: 100% of 5 is 5 100% of 91 is 91 100% of 732 is 732 Finding 50% of a number: Remember that 50% means half, so to find 50% of a number, just divide it by 2: 50% of 20 is 10 50% of 88 is 44 Finding 25% of a number: Remember that 25% equals 1/4, so to find 25% of a number, divide it by 4: 25% of 40 is 10 25% of 88 is 22 Finding 20% of a number: Finding 20% of a number is handy if you like the service you’ve received in a restaurant, because a good tip is 20% of the check.

A pie chart, which looks like a divided circle, shows you how a whole object is cut up into parts. Pie charts are most often used to represent percentages. For example, the following figure is a pie chart representing Eileen’s monthly expenses.You can tell at a glance that Eileen’s largest expense is rent and that her second largest is her car.