Ayanna is 17 and Brittany is 14.
To find this, let's write two equations using the given information.
a = b + 3
3b + 2a = 76
Now, just substitute the first equation into the second and solve.
3b + 2(b + 3) = 76
3b + 2b + 6 = 76
5b = 70
b = 14
If Brittany is 14, then Ayanna is 3 years older at 17.
You would transform 5x + 2x into the same term with the associative property, adding like terms. If you subsitute the different values into the expressions you notice that both have a rate of change of 7 like an arithmetic sequence. To see if any value will make the two expressions equal you make them equal to each other.
5x + 2x = 7x -1
7x = 7x - 1
0 = -1
No they will never have be a solution to both expressions to make them equal because they're parallel to each other.
See attached picture for solution:
