Hey there!
Let's first define our goal. Our goal here is to be able to isolate the variable, n, and solve for it by moving everything to the other side. We see that we have two sides of the equation, and by using the property of equality which states that whatever you do to one side you do to the other and the expression remains equal, we can solve this equation.
It looks like the only thing we have on the left side with n is that 6 1/2. In order to get rid of it, we must subtract it from both sides, because the property of equality states you must do the inverse operation.
We have:
n = 12 - 6 1/2
n = 5 1/2
Hope this helps!
The most simplistical form of 2/5 × 11 is 22/5, because once you multiply the numerals, you can't simplify anymore.
First, we can choose the seats for the four mathematicians. Then we seat the physicits, then the engineer. There are 4! ways to seat the mathematicians, then 3! ways to seat the physicists, then 1! ways to seat the engineer. But then we must divide by 8, because we can rotate the table, so there are 8!*4!*3!/8 = 725760 ways to seat everyone.
