Question

There are 50 total battles. Ryan wins 10 of them. Using this equation, when I double wins by 2 and substrate by total battles how am I able to find the difference between wins and losses by doubling wins?

This equation works every time and I don’t understand why you double by two and how that works.

W= wins
L= Losses
D= Difference between W&L
TB= total battles

2W - TB = D
2(10) — 50 = -30

Wins is down by 30 ^^

W — D = L
10 - (-30)= 40

Or even if you did losses instead of wins.

2L — TB = D
2(40) — 50 = 30

L — D = W
40 - 30 = 10

Please just explain how doubling losses or wins will get me the difference between them.

Answer 1

The equation you provided, 2W - TB = D, is a way to find the difference between wins and losses by doubling the number of wins and subtracting the total number of battles. Let's break it down to understand why it works.

First, let's define the variables:

W = number of wins

L = number of losses

D = difference between wins and losses

TB = total battles

The equation 2W - TB = D can be understood as follows:

Doubling the number of wins (2W) represents a hypothetical scenario where every win is counted twice.

Subtracting the total number of battles (TB) from the doubled wins accounts for the fact that the total number of battles includes both wins and losses.

The resulting value (D) represents the difference between wins and losses.

Let's consider an example using your values:

Total battles (TB) = 50

Wins (W) = 10

Using the equation 2W - TB = D:

2(10) - 50 = D

20 - 50 = D

D = -30

In this example, the difference (D) between wins and losses is -30, indicating that there are 30 more losses than wins.

The same principle applies when using losses instead of wins. For example, the equation 2L - TB = D can be used to find the difference between wins and losses by doubling the number of losses and subtracting the total number of battles.

In summary, by doubling either the wins or losses and subtracting the total battles, you can find the difference between wins and losses. This approach takes into account the total number of battles and provides a measure of the difference between the two.