Question

a 290 inch pipe is cut into two pieces one piece is four times the length of the other find the links of the two pieces

Answer 1

290=x+4x
290=5x
x=290/5
x=58 inch (the shortest piece)

290-58=232 inch (the longest piece)

Answer 2

I would set an equation up like this, where two pieces, one being 4 times as long as the other, are 290 inches together.

4x + x = 290

Now, simplify and solve:

5x = 290

x = 58

Now that we have x, we know the length of the smaller piece.  The other piece, however, is 4x.

4x = 4(58) = 232

The lengths of the pieces are 58 and 232.