Equation Help?

Question

I just wanna know how do I know which number do I pick out to carry to the other side.

Examplle: 8x+2=6x+10

how do I work this problem, and can you tell me which number I start out with and why?

Answer 1

All the variables with their coefficients should be on the left hand side and the numericals or arithmatical constnts to be taken to the right hand side. Exampple
8x+2=6x+10
=> 8x-6x=10-2 [Note that there were two varibles in the problem 8x and 6x and they have been arranged on the left hand side.Because 6x was originally on the right hand side ,its sign hs been changed while transferring it from right hand side to the left one.Similarly there were two numericals 2 and 10and they have been rearranged on the right side.The sign of 2 hs been changed because it was transferred from left hand side to the right one]
=>2x=8
=>x=8/2=4

Answer 2

The great thing is, as long as you do the exact same thing to both sides, it absolutely does not matter! :-)

Think of it like a double pan balance in science class. If you put the same weight on both sides of the scale, it will stay balanced. So whether you put a -8x on both sides or a -6x on both sides, you are going to get the same result in the end. As long as you move all the variables (x's or y's or whatever unknown is given) to one side and all the numbers w/o variables to the other, you will end up with the right answer.

But as a previous poster indicated, people usally prefer to work with postive numbers more than negative numbers so they are more likely to subtract things in such a way as to end up working with a positive. That's just a personal preference though because it honestly doesn't matter. Try the above equation both ways and you should end up with the exact same value for x! :-)

Answer 3

Do the numbers that don't have varibles first. That's either 2 or 10. I generally pick the left number, but it doesn't matter. You should come up with the same answer if you did it correctly.
Starting with 2:
8x+2-2=6x+10-2
8x=6x+8
8x-6x=6x-6x=8
2x=8
2x/2=8/2
x=4

Starting with 10:
8x+2-10=6x+10-10
8x-8=6x
8x-8x-8=6x-8x
-8= -2x
-8/-2= -2x/-2
x= 4

Answer 4

It usually works best to take the smaller number of X's and subtract that on both sides. So here you'd subtract 6x. You'd get
2x + 2 = 10
Then you'll subtract 2 on both sides
2x = 8
Divide by 2. The answer is x = 4