WAIT (a + b)²
A student confidently expands (a + b)² as a² + b², the Freshman's Dream, while a horrified onlooker dives to stop them.
Transcript
[1] [Board: (a+b)²] "Oh, I know what this must be!" Another person: "WAIT"
[2] [Board explodes: (a+b)² = a² + b²] "NOOOOOO"
Use this cartoon
Free for classrooms, worksheets, slides and other non-commercial use under CC BY-NC 4.0, with credit to Ben Orlin.
Cartoon by Ben Orlin, Math with Bad Drawings. https://cartoons.mathwithbaddrawings.com/2024-09-03-wait/ (CC BY-NC 4.0)