Tate finishes high school in 1 year less than normal.  It takes him 3 times that long to get his bachelor's degree and Ph.D.  How many years did he spend in high school and college?
He finished high school in 4-1=
<gadget id="calculator">4-1</gadget>
<output>3</output>
3 years.
It takes him 3*3=
<gadget id="calculator">3*3</gadget>
<output>9</output>
9 years to finish tertiary education.
So he spends 3+9=
<gadget id="calculator">3+9</gadget>
<output>12</output>
12 years on this education.

<result>12</result>