Question: Brian likes to read books. He read one book that had 20 chapters, two books that had 15 chapters each, and one book that had half the chapters of the three previous books put together. How many chapters of books did Brian read?
Answer: Brian read two books with 15 chapters, so he read 2 * 15 = 30 chapters. He also read a book with 20 chapters, bringing the total for the first three to 30 + 20 = 50 chapters. He then read a book with half the chapters of his cumulative total so far, so it had 50 / 2 = 25 chapters. In total, he read 30 + 20 + 25 = 75 chapters. The answer is 75.
[Question]Rick held a fundraiser and is figuring out who still owes money. He marked on a sheet how much everyone has promised to contribute, but he forgot to note how much some people had actually paid. Altogether, everyone has promised to contribute $400, and Rick has actually received $285. Sally, Amy, Derek, and Carl all still owe money. Sally and Carl both owe equal amounts, Amy owes $30, and Derek owes half as much as Amy. How much, in dollars, do Sally and Carl each owe?
[Answer]In total, Rick is still owed 400 - 285 = $115. Derek owes half as much as Amy, so he owes $30 / 2 = $15. This means that Sally and Carl owe a combined total of $115 - $30 – $15 = $70. As they owe equal amounts, they therefore owe $70 / 2 = $35 each. The answer is 35.
Q: Stefan, Vail, and Aiguo collected seashells. Stefan had 16 more seashells than Vail. Vail had 5 less than Aiguo. Aiguo had 20 seashells. How many seashells did the 3 children have in total?
A: Aiguo = 20 shells. Vail = 20 - 5 = 15 shells. Stefan = 15 + 16 = 31 shells. Total = 20 + 15 + 31 = 66. The 3 children had 66 seashells altogether. The answer is 66.
Question: John and his two brothers decide to split the cost of an apartment. It is 40% more expensive than John's old apartment which costs $1200 per month. How much does John save per year by splitting the apartment compared to living alone?
Answer: His old apartment cost 1200 * 12 = $14,400 per year. His new apartment 1200 * 1.4 = $1680 per month. That means it cost 1680 / 3 = $560 per month. So it cost 560 * 12 = $6720. So he saves 14400 - 6720 = $7680. The answer is 7680.
[Question]Jack says he has 13 more notebooks in his bag than Gerald. Jack gives 5 notebooks to Paula and 6 notebooks to Mike. If Gerald has 8 notebooks, how many notebooks does Jack have left?
[Answer]Jack had 13 more than 8 notebooks for a total of 13 + 8 = 21 notebooks. He gave 5 notebooks to Paula so he has 21 - 5 = 16 notebooks left. He gave another 6 to Mike so he has 16 - 6 = 10 notebooks left. The answer is 10.
[Question]Jackson and Brandon both invest $500 in the stock market. Jackson's investment quadruples in value, while Brandon's is reduced to 20% of the initial value. How much more money does Jackson have than Brandon now?
[Answer]
First find the end value of Jackson's investment: $500 * 4 = $2000. Then find the end value of Brandon's investment: 20% * $500 = $100. Then subtract the value of Brandon's investment from the value of Jackson's investment to find the difference: $2000 - $100 = $1900. The answer is 1900.