An example of why children struggle with math...

[kdonnel]

This is a display at my local Costco.

Apparently the marketing people at Nestle are unaware that the world has settled upon agreed upon mathematical symbols and that "/" is used for division not multiplication.

72 = 6/12
72 = 1/2
?


The Tide display was a little more correct but suffers from an unknown conversion factor.
38 x 4 is indeed 152.

But what is the conversion factor between PODS and PACS?
It really should say 152 PODS.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

Math has too many numbers. I figured out what they were getting at, but it took me a while.

 

[North of Mouse]

They look pretty straight forward to me - maybe I'm the one lacking!

 

[Floridaman999]

They look pretty straight forward to me - maybe I'm the one lacking!

I'm lacking with you because I got them too.

 

[RedAngie]

The Nestle example is obviously incorrect. Should be "72 oz = 2.041 kg"

And pacs is the correct term for the resulting product when the multiplicand is pods.

 

[tvguy]

I'm lacking with you because I got them too.

Yeah, I'm not reading that as divided (or times for that matter) I'm reading it as the same as 6 12 ounce packages.

 

[kdonnel]

Yeah, I'm not reading that as divided (or times for that matter) I'm reading it as the same as 6 12 ounce packages.

Which is multiplication which uses x or * as the operator, not /.

 

[tvguy]

The Nestle example is obviously incorrect. Should be "72 oz = 2.041 kg"
.

LOL. I got a fruit cake recipe from my cousin who lives in Canada in an e-mail, and everything was in ounces. 40 years after their metric conversion, grocery stores there still list prices per pound for meat and produce.

 

[tvguy]

Which is multiplication which uses x or * as the operator, not /.

Yes, but THAT isn't what they are trying to communicate. They are saying it this big bag has the same contents as 6 smaller bags.

 

[North of Mouse]

The Nestle example is obviously incorrect. Should be "72 oz = 2.041 kg"

And pacs is the correct term for the resulting product when the multiplicand is pods.

6 - 12oz. pkgs. = 72oz.
Why is that wrong??

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

It’s like toilet paper math!

 

[tvguy]

6 - 12oz. pkgs. = 72oz.
Why is that wrong??

And the photo cuts it off, but it seems to show one large bag on the left, and what I am guessing are 6 smaller bags on the right.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Which is multiplication which uses x or * as the operator, not /.

Nah this is a case of knowing the various ways packages are labeled.

I would absolutely 100% read the box to mean the Costco 72 oz (as in weight) bag is the equivalent of 6 (as in the quantity) 12 oz (as in the weight) of bags.

To apply math the exact way you are demonstrating to everything doesn't make sense. Symbols can have various meanings and this is one of them. So if you (general you) came upon that with your child you would want to explain this doesn't mean 6 divided by 12 it means 6 12oz bags and the way it's presented on the packaging means that.

For the Tide example I would absolutely 100% read the box to mean the Costco Tide 152 pacs box contains 4 packages of Tide Pacs. Each Tide Pacs package is 38 count in terms of pacs. As far as the PODS vs pacs thing. Costco is actually correct. TIDE PODS is actually trademarked by Tide. Pacs is what the detergent pods are called.

Tide actually uses the terminology pacs on their packaging as an FYI:


Arm & Hammer calls theirs Power Paks and uses the spelling paks rather than pacs. Think of TIDE PODS as the brand.

Now packaging is like this elsewhere. However, you're going to find warehouse style places to have more of these types of packaging due to the nature of the place. They often bundle things together as they are sold in bulk (such as the Tide one) or they have a special size of something that is sold in bulk (such as the chocolate chips one). In order to help customers out for comparison to how it would be more commonly sold in non-warehouse style stores they would be more likely to have packaging reflecting it.

 

[RedAngie]

LOL. I got a fruit cake recipe from my cousin who lives in Canada in an e-mail, and everything was in ounces. 40 years after their metric conversion, grocery stores there still list prices per pound for meat and produce.

Yeah, I noticed that when I've been to Canada. I think it's permissible as long as the price per kilo or 200 grams or whatever is listed below in small print.

6 - 12oz. pkgs. = 72oz.
Why is that wrong??

It's not wrong. I'm being facetious.

 

[North of Mouse]

Yeah, I noticed that when I've been to Canada. I think it's permissible as long as the price per kilo or 200 grams or whatever is listed below in small print.

It's not wrong. I'm being facetious.

Sorry, it's been a long day here!!

 

[kimblebee]

LOL. I got a fruit cake recipe from my cousin who lives in Canada in an e-mail, and everything was in ounces. 40 years after their metric conversion, grocery stores there still list prices per pound for meat and produce.

You really love bringing up this point again and again and again...

 

[tvguy]

You really love bringing up this point again and again and again...

LOL. Search the boards on any topic and see how many times they come up again and again and again.

 

[kdonnel]

As far as the PODS vs pacs thing.

So after visiting their page I have been led to believe that a Pac is a group of Pods not that a Pod is a group of Pacs.

So a container with 38 Tide Pods is a Tide Pac.

In the Costco example, Tide is selling 4 Tide Pacs that contain 152 Tide Pods.

Yet their package says it contains 152 Pacs.

Here is their website.


When shopping for Pacs, you are presented with various Pacs containing Tide Pods, opposite of what you posted Tide shows on their packaging. Tide doesn't seem to know themselves if a single glop of detergent is a Pod or a Pac and if a group of them is a Pac or a Pod.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

So after visiting their page I have been led to believe that a Pac is a group of Pods not that a Pod is a group of Pacs.

So a container with 38 Tide Pods is a Tide Pac.

In the Costco example, Tide is selling 4 Tide Pacs that contain 152 Tide Pods.

Yet their package says it contains 152 Pacs.

Here is their website.
View attachment 369017

When shopping for Pacs, you are presented with various Pacs containing Tide Pods, opposite of what you posted Tide shows on their packaging. Tide doesn't seem to know themselves if a single glop of detergent is a Pod or a Pac and if a group of them is a Pac or a Pod.

Yeah....you're not getting it.

 

[SirDuff]

Yeah, I noticed that when I've been to Canada. I think it's permissible as long as the price per kilo or 200 grams or whatever is listed below in small print.

It's just to make it look cheaper (as has been noted the other 712 times that TV guy has managed to find a reason to mention it). I must admit that where I now live (Switzerland), it took a bit not to flinch when seeing prices in kg (I lived in the US between Canada and here). Though I still flinch when I see some prices (like bananas at 3.00 CHF/kg).

To the chocolate chip example, reminds of the cake that I made when I was about eight. My parents were away and I wanted to make a cake to surprise them when they came back. My nanny (who only spoke/read Polish) supervised but had never made a cake from a box mix in her life, so was really just making sure I didn't burn down the house. The box said to add 1 1/4 cups of water. Well, I had learned in school that, when you have mixed fractions, the whole number is written bigger (i.e. bigger font) than the numbers in the fraction. So, I added 11/4 cups (i.e. almost 3 cups) of water. Having not made much cake in my life, I didn't realise that the batter shouldn't be so runny. It did eventually cook (added a lot of baking time) and I nicely decorated it. It was rubber. I could even bounce