How to Use Reverse Polish Notation With a Graphing Calculator

The computational method known as reverse Polish notation is an alternative to the familiar 1+2 treatment of integers. Mathematicians developed it to give calculators the option to do the computation last. Some people say the reverse polish notation method is more straightforward because the action is all done at the end of the list of numbers being worked on.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Break down your equation in your head or on paper. Get lists of number that will be operated on together. Whether it's addition, multiplication or subtraction, you'll want to be able to enter all of your connected numbers together.

2. Do your order of operations. Look at which number needs to be operated on first and make sure you have separated any numbers in parentheses correctly.

3. Put in your first integer, and hit the "Enter" key on your graphing calculator. If your graphing calculator supports reverse polish notation operations, it should hold your integer while you input others.

4. Put in all of your set of numbers for the operation you're working on, entering each one at a time, until you come to the last number.

5. Hit the operation you want to do to the stack of numbers (+, X, OR -) after entering your last number. You should see a correct result spelled out in your calculator's command line.

Tips & Warnings

• In polish reverse notation operations, think of your numbers as a "stack." Some programming languages use similar "object" ideas to control data. In reverse polish notations, your stacks of numbers are to be operated on together, and grouped accordingly.