Aline segment has length 36 cm. it was divided into four unequal parts. if the distance between the midpoints of the first and the fourth parts is 30 cm, what is the distance between the midpoints of the second and the third parts?

Given that the length of the line segment is 36 cm and the distance between the midpoints of the first and the fourth parts is 30 cm, this means that the sum of the lengths of the first and the last part is

2(36 - 30) = 2(6) = 12 cm.

Thus, the sum of the length of the second and the third part is 36 - 12 = 24 cm.

Therefore, the distance between the midpoints of the second and the third parts is 24 / 2 = 12 cm.

This law is sometimes called the grouping property. as you can see, regardless of how the numbers are grouped, the answer is still 13. the associative law of multiplication is similar to the same law for addition. it says that no matter how you group numbers you are multiplying together, you will get the same answer.