1. The problem is to calculate the total of a word by assigning numerical values to each letter and summing them. 2. A common method is to assign A=1, B=2, ..., Z=26. 3. For example, for the word "CAT": - C = 3 - A = 1 - T = 20 4. Sum these values: $$3 + 1 + 20 = 24$$ 5. So, the total value of the word "CAT" is 24. 6. You can apply this method to any word by converting each letter to its alphabetical position and adding them up.