Question

Evaluate this expression
-3/-5 + (-60+76) + 2^2
express your answer in simplest terms

Answer 1

2^2 is 4 and the negative signs cancel out for -3/-5.
For the middle term, just subtract 60 from 76. With these
three equivalences, all we must do is add them to get the answer.
So, we have:

3/5 + 16 + 4 = 20.6 or 103/5.

Answer 2

103/5 would be simplest form?

Answer 3

Simplest form really depends on what the instructor is looking for in the class. If you are self studying, I highly recommend the decimal version (20.6). This is because it is an intuitive result that is easy to gauge mentally.