It's harder because people fail to make relations or don't think about how they can simplify a problem. Or big numbers are generally harder for mental math. Either or.
Solving 25% of 36 then multiplying by 100 (effectively removing the "%" part of 25%) gets 900. It's also a bit indirect, so many people would overlook it (myself included).
If you were to ask me what 36 * 25 was in most any other context I'd do 40 * 25 = 1,000 - 4*25 = 900.
Although, thanks to your prompt, I'm likely to remember to see if I can cheat with percentages. :) Smaller numbers and fractions are more intuitive for me.
Solving 25% of 36 then multiplying by 100 (effectively removing the "%" part of 25%) gets 900. It's also a bit indirect, so many people would overlook it (myself included).
If you were to ask me what 36 * 25 was in most any other context I'd do 40 * 25 = 1,000 - 4*25 = 900.
Although, thanks to your prompt, I'm likely to remember to see if I can cheat with percentages. :) Smaller numbers and fractions are more intuitive for me.