Question

There are 23 animals in the barn. Some are geese and some are cows. There are 80 legs in all. How many of each animal are there?

Answer 1

Answer:

17 cows and 6 geese

Step-by-step explanation:

1. set up two equations:

C + G = 23 (number of cows and geese = total number of animals)

4C + 2G = 80 (cows have 4 legs, geese have 2 legs and the total # of legs is 80)

2. 2(C+G)=2(23) ===> 2C + 2G = 46

3. subtract 4C + 2G = 80 and 2C + 2G = 46 to equal 2C=34, divide by 2 and C=17 (17 cows)

4. apply 17 back to the original (C + G = 23) equation to get: 17 + G = 23, subtract 17 from 23 and G=6 (6 geese)

i hope the way i explained it was clear! :)