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Calculators/Blog

Blog

Short pieces on the arithmetic the calculators do, and the places it usually goes wrong.

Margin vs Markup: Why the Two Are Not the Same NumberThe same dollar of profit, divided by two different numbers, gives two very different percentages.Why a 50% Drop Needs a 100% Rise to Get BackA 20 per cent fall followed by a 20 per cent rise does not return you to where you started.Small Rate Differences, Large Amounts of MoneyThe difference between 6 and 6.5 per cent is not eight per cent more interest. Over decades it is far more than that.What BMI Can and Cannot Tell YouA single number built from two measurements cannot distinguish muscle from fat, and was never designed to.Unit Conversion Mistakes That Cost Real MoneyThe dangerous conversions are the ones where both units are called the same thing.