
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
A certain mechanical part processing consists of 2 procedures. The scrap rate of the first procedure is $a$, and the scrap rate of the second procedure is $b$. Assuming that the scrap production of these two procedures is independent of each other, then the scrap rate of the product is __________.

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
user