We have to calculate the expression:
[tex]\frac{1}{2}-(-8)[/tex]Substracting a number is equivalent to adding the opposite number.
In this case substracting "-8" is equivalent to adding "8", which is the opposite of "-8".
Then, we can write:
[tex]\frac{1}{2}-(-8)=\frac{1}{2}+8=\frac{1+8*2}{2}=\frac{1+16}{2}=\frac{17}{2}[/tex]Answer: the expression is equal to 17/2 or 8.5.