Question

Alex's sock drawer contains plain, spotted and striped socks in the ratio 5 : 3 : 8. What fraction of Alex's socks are striped? Give your answer in it's simplest form.

Answer 1

Plain : Spotted : Striped socks are in the ratio of 5 : 3 : 8

So we can say that number of plain socks = 5x

Number of spotted socks = 3x

Number of striped socks = 8x

Hence, total number of socks = 5x + 3x + 8x = 16x

⇒ Fraction of Striped Socks = $\frac{\text{Number of Striped Socks}}{\text{Total Number of Socks}}$

⇒ Fraction of Striped Socks = $\frac{8x}{16x}$

⇒ Fraction of Striped Socks = $\frac{1}{2}$

Hence, $\frac{1}{2}$ of Alex's socks are striped