Asked by Mary

Two yrs ago, Sam was two-thirds of Pam's age ( at that time). In three years, Same will be three-fourths of Pam's age. In 20 yrs, the sum of their ages will be 61. How old is Sam?

Answers

3(s-2) = 2(p-2)
4(s+3) = 3(p+3)
s = 12, p=17
two years ago, 10 = 2/3 (15) ✔
in three years, 15 = 3/4 (20) ✔
But in 20 years, 32+37 = 69
Answered by mathhelper
Your question is gobble-de-goop

You have 3 conditions imposed on two unknowns, which in this case
leads to a contradiction, as shown when the previous tutor shows that the
solution based on the first two conditions does not satisfy the third condition.

Suppose I solve it based only on the last two conditons:
Let Sam's present age be s, and Pam's current age be p

3 years from now,
Sam will be s+3, and Pam will be p+3
At that time, Sam's age will be three-fourths of Pam's age
---> s+3 = (3/4)(p+3)
4s + 12 = 3p + 9
4s - 3p = -3

third condition: in 20 years, the sum of their ages will be 61
---> s+20 + p+20 = 61
s+p = 21 or p = 21-s
sub into 4s - 3s = -3
4s - 3(21-s) = -3
7s = 60
s = 8.57 , let's say 8 1/2, then Pam is 21-s = appr 12 1/2

different answers, both satisfy your 2nd and your 3rd condition, but not the first.

Check your question!
There are no AI answers yet. The ability to request AI answers is coming soon!

Related Questions