Question

What is algebra?

Answer 1

Algebra is a branch of mathematics dealing with symbols and the rules for manipulating those symbols.
In elementary algebra, these symbols (x, y etc.) represent quantities without fixed values, known as variables.
Just as sentences describe relationships between specific words, in algebra, equations describe relationships between variables.
Simply put, Algebra is about finding the unknown or it is about putting real life problems into equations and then solving them.
Let us understand it with an example:
A clown was carrying a handful of balloons. Along came the wind and blew 8 away, leaving him only with 9. How many did he start with?
The x replaces the unknown that we are trying to find out, we know the wind blew 8 away and we know that the man was left with 9 balloons.
In algebra, this problem would then be converted to:
x - 8 = 9
We can solve it by adding 8 to both the sides.
x - 8 + 8 = 9 + 8
x = 17