Surviving College Algebra
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Properties of Addition and Multiplication
Let a,b, and c be any numbers.

Commutative:    a + b = b + a
Example    3 + 4 = 4 + 3
             7 = 7

Associative:  (a + b) + c = a + (b + c)
Example        (2 + 4) + 1 = 2 + (4  + 1)
             6 + 1 = 2 + 5
             7 = 7

The distributive property is the one most commonly used.

Distributive:    a (b + c) = a b + a c
Example           3 (4 + 1) = 3(4) + 3(1)
             3(5) = 12 + 3
             15 = 15