SOLUTION: what does the order of a factor in an algebraic expression mean

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Question 1177435: what does the order of a factor in an algebraic expression mean
Found 2 solutions by ikleyn, greenestamps:
Answer by ikleyn(52894) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
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It means and it instructs you, in what order the operations should be executed.



Answer by greenestamps(13209) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!


To my knowledge, "order of a factor" is not standard mathematical vocabulary; a quick attempt at an internet search did not reveal anything useful.

Without any context in which the phrase is used, I would suspect that the order of a factor is the number of times the factor is used in the expression -- i.e., it is the exponent on the factor.

For example, in the expression

%28x%29%28%28x-2%29%5E2%29%28%28x-3%29%5E4%29

The order of the factor (x) is 1, the order of the factor (x-2)^2 is 2, and the order of the factor (x-3)^4 is 4.

If this doesn't answer your question, post the question again, giving us some context of where you found the phrase "order of a factor".