Section 1.2: Formulating the Problem
Essential Ideas

• Natural Numbers and Whole Numbers
  The set of numbers {1, 2, 3, 4, } is called the set of counting numbers or the set of natural numbers.
  If the number zero is included, then the set {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, } is called the set of whole numbers.

• Order of Operations
  1. Parentheses first
  2. Multiplication and division, reading from left to right
  3. Addition and subtraction, reading from left to right

• One or more numbers connected by valid mathematical operations are called numerical expressions. To simplify a numerical expression means to carry out all the operations according to the order of operations, and to write the answer as a single number.