# Strange math handling: var\*var != var^2

**URL:** <https://forum.kirupa.com/t/strange-math-handling-var-var-var-2/246207>\
**Category:** flash\
**Created:** [December 8, 2007, 12:42am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/strange-math-handling-var-var-var-2/246207 "2007-12-08T00:42:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Felixz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@Felixz](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/Felixz)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2007, 12:42am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/strange-math-handling-var-var-var-2/246207/1 "2007-12-08T00:42:17Z")

</div>

It’s a question concernig that:

> **[Clip Brightness taken from daylight](https://www.kirupa.com/forum/showthread.php?t=282936)**
>
> Got a web design/development question or just want to hang out with the most awesome people on the planet? Drop on in!

```auto
var date=new Date(2007,11,1,12);
trace((date.getHours() * date.getHours()) / 144 - date.getHours() / 6 + .75);
trace((date.getHours() ^ 2) / 144 - date.getHours() / 6 + .75);

```

Gives:

```auto
-0.25
-1.1527777777777777

```

First is the right one, but why it is so different?