Give the step-by-step reasoning process and then the final answer. The lifespan of a hamster is 6 years less than that of a bat. The lifespan of a frog is 4 times that of a hamster. Altogether, the lifespan of the animals is 30 years. What is the lifespan of the bat?
Let’s set up an equation by calling the lifespan of a bat x, and therefore the lifespan of the hamster x – 6, and the lifespan of the frog 4 (x – 6) which add together to equal 30, like this: x + x – 6 + 4 (x – 6) = 30. That gives us 6x – 30 = 30 and we should add 30 to each side to try to isolate the x. Now we have 6x = 60, which we will divide by 6, 6x / 6 = 60 / 6. This gives us x = 10. The bat has a lifespan of 10 years.
The final answer: 10.