Arithmetic operators in Ruby - Step-by-Step Execution

Concept Flow - Arithmetic operators

Start

↓

Read operands

↓

Choose operator (+, -, *, /, %)

↓

Perform calculation

↓

Store/Display result

↓

End

This flow shows how Ruby reads two numbers, applies an arithmetic operator, calculates the result, and then shows it.

Execution Sample

Ruby

a = 10
b = 3
sum = a + b
product = a * b
remainder = a % b

This code adds, multiplies, and finds the remainder of two numbers.

Execution Table

Step	Variable	Operation	Operands	Result
1	a	Assign	10	10
2	b	Assign	3	3
3	sum	Addition (+)	10 + 3	13
4	product	Multiplication (*)	10 * 3	30
5	remainder	Modulo (%)	10 % 3	1

💡 All operations completed, variables hold their calculated values.

Variable Tracker

Variable	Start	After Step 1	After Step 2	After Step 3	After Step 4	After Step 5
a	nil	10	10	10	10	10
b	nil	nil	3	3	3	3
sum	nil	nil	nil	13	13	13
product	nil	nil	nil	nil	30	30
remainder	nil	nil	nil	nil	nil	1

Key Moments - 2 Insights

Why does the remainder operator (%) give 1 when dividing 10 by 3?

Because 10 divided by 3 is 3 with a remainder of 1, as shown in step 5 of the execution_table.

Why do variables keep their values after each operation?

Each assignment stores the result in the variable, so after step 3, 'sum' holds 13, and it stays until changed.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution_table, what is the value of 'product' after step 4?

A 1

B 13

C 30

D 3

💡 Hint

Check the 'Result' column for 'product' at step 4 in the execution_table.

At which step is the addition operation performed?

A Step 3

B Step 2

C Step 4

D Step 5

💡 Hint

Look for the 'Addition (+)' operation in the 'Operation' column of the execution_table.

If 'b' was changed to 5, what would be the new value of 'remainder' at step 5?

A 2

B 0

C 1

D 3

💡 Hint

Calculate 10 % 5 and check the 'remainder' value logic in the variable_tracker.

Concept Snapshot

Ruby arithmetic operators:
+ addition
- subtraction
* multiplication
/ division
% modulo (remainder)
Use variables to store results.

Full Transcript

This visual trace shows how Ruby uses arithmetic operators to calculate values step-by-step. Variables 'a' and 'b' are assigned 10 and 3. Then 'sum' is calculated as a + b = 13. 'product' is a * b = 30. 'remainder' is a % b = 1. Each step updates variables, storing results for later use. The modulo operator (%) gives the remainder after division. This helps beginners see how each operator works and how variables change.