no, % is modulo, ie the remainder when the one number is divided by the other.
mathematically speaking, the modulus of a number is it's size (it's written |a|, for example). So if a>0, |a| = a, and if a<0, |a| = -a.
As it happens in this case, your example does give the same result, but that's just an amazing coincidence.
(PS It's an area where the PHP manual is incorrect:
Modulus noun (moduli) math the absolute value of a real number, whether positive or negative.
modulo arithmetic (Or "clock arithmetic") A kind of integer arithmetic that reduces all numbers to one of a fixed set [0..N-1] (this would be "modulo N arithmetic") by effectively repeatedly adding or subtracting N until the result is within this range.
Ordinary "clock arithmetic" is like modulo arithmetic except that the range is [1..12] whereas modulo 12 would be [0..11].
)
