Though I can't speak for the parent post's author, applying that post's spirit to your example would instead yield, for the quadratic formula: 'The negative li

Though I can't speak for the parent post's author, applying that post's spirit to your example would instead yield, for the quadratic formula: 'The negative linear term, added and subtracted from the square root of the discriminant, all divided by twice the quadratic term'; then before or after this you'd define the discriminant, as it's an illuminating concept in its own right. I see the target of this wishful thinking a sort-of middle-ground between a formula's derivation/proof and its compact form.