Maths Question

henrygregory

Techie Stuff was the best place I could think of for this.
I am trying to get my head around this question and I am struggling.

"A fish has a head 9" long. The tail is equal to the size of the head plus one-half the size of the body. The body is the size of the head plus the tail." How long is the fish?

My working out is:
head =9"
tail = 9" + 1/2body
body = 9" + tail

What do I need to do to work out the answer?

Could it be 9 + 9 + 9 = 27?

HELLPPPP!!

retiredin2011

http://www.algebra.com/algebra/homework/word/numbers/Numbers_Word_Problems.faq.question.204235.html

Stompa

henrygregory wrote: »

How long is the fish?

Big fish, 6 feet!

indesisiv

Stompa wrote: »

Big fish, 6 feet!

It does seem like a rather long fish!

However to help you answer your question. Its just a simple case of substituting what you know.

For instance: Tail = Head + 1/2Body
Tail = 9 +1/2Body
Tail = 9 +1/2(Head+Tail)

Going to stop there otherwise you won't have to learn to get your answer.

John_Gray

You don't have any questions about how long it takes to fill a bath when water is coming in from the cold tap at one rate, someone is adding hot water via a bucket at another rate, and water is leaving the bath through the unplugged plughole at yet another rate, do you?

Your question and the bath-tub question were great enthusiasms of the late Victorians!

bod1467

The fish is 72" long.

sickparrot

Substituting one of the variables is the key,

t = h + b/2

b = h + t

get rid of the t by substituting t in the second equation by it's equivalent in the first, reduce it down and you know h so b can be calculated and hence t afterwards.

bod1467

I did it the other way ... substituted b with h + t