Question

Whats the absolute value of 8?

Answer 1

The absolute value of `8` is `8`.

In symbols: `abs(8) = 8`

Explanation:

The absolute value of a number is its 'size'. For positive numbers the size is the same as the number. For negative numbers it is the corresponding positive number.

In symbols:

`abs(x) = abs(-x) = x` when `x >= 0`

Another way of thinking of it is to imagine numbers laid out in order, evenly spaced on a line with `0` at the centre, negative numbers on the left and positive numbers on the right, with `1` being a unit distance from `0`. The absolute value of any number is then its distance from `0`.