Question

Priya is stacking building blocks to make a tower. She takes a break when the tower is 2 and 1/2 feet tall, which is 5/8 of the height of the tower she wants to build. How tall is the tower when finished?

Answer 1

Answer:

4 feet.

Step-by-step explanation:

Let x be the height of tower when finished.

We have been given that Priya takes a break when the tower is 2 and 1/2 feet tall, which is 5/8 of the height of the tower she wants to build.

This means that 5/8 of x equals $2\frac{1}{2}$. Let us represent this information in an equation.

$\frac{5}{8}*x=2\frac{1}{2}$

Let us convert our given mixed fraction into improper fraction.

$\frac{5}{8}*x=\frac{5}{2}$

Let us multiply both sides of our equation by 8/5.

$\frac{8}{5}\times \frac{5}{8}*x=\frac{5}{2}\times \frac{8}{5}$

$x=\frac{8}{2}$

$x=4$

Therefore, the tower will be 4 feet tall when finished.