Answer:
Joe picked 112 strawberries
Step-by-step explanation:
If Ian picked 5 times as many strawberries as Michelle, and Joe picked 7 times as many as Michelle. Together, Ian and Joe picked a total 192 strawberries.
If we want to find out how many strawberries Joe picked, we need to work with the proportions we are given.
Let's denote Michelle's strawberries as x
Ian picked five times that many: 5x
Joe picked 7 times that many: 7x
Ian and Joe together picked 192 strawberries
192 = 5x + 7x combine like terms
192 = 12x divide both sides by 12 to isolate x
x = 16
If Joe's strawberries are represented by 7x and x is 16 strawberries, then
7 (16) = Joe's strawberries
Joe picked 112 strawberries