When you subtract one negative integer from another, will your answer be greater than or less than the integer you started with.

hello from mrbilldoesmath!

answer:

a(n) - a(n-1) -3

discussion:

this ones a bit interesting. given a(n) = 5 - 3n consider this:

a(n-1) = 5 - 3(n-1)

          = (5 - 3n) + 3             => but a(n) = 5 - 3n, the first term

          = a(n)   + 3                 => subtract 3 from both sides

a(n-1) -3 = a(n)  

or

a(n) - a(n-1) -3

you,

mrb

the 8 in 8,420 is in the thousands place so it's value is 8 thousand.

the 8 in 6,870 is in the hundreds place so it's value is 8 hundred.

divide 8000 by 800 to find the answer:

8000 / 800 = 10

the 8 in 8,420 is 10 times greater than the 8 in 6,870