there are 300 seniors tis year in the high school. of thus class, 140 take a math course and the 145 take a language course. if a student from the seniors that takes a math or a language course is 75% about how many from the seniors take both a math and a language course

1 answer

Let \( M \) be the number of students taking a math course, \( L \) be the number of students taking a language course, and \( B \) be the number of students taking both courses.

From the problem, we know:

  • Total seniors \( = 300 \)
  • Students taking math \( M = 140 \)
  • Students taking language \( L = 145 \)
  • Students taking either math or language \( = 75% \) of total seniors = \( 0.75 \times 300 = 225 \)

Using the principle of inclusion-exclusion for the number of students taking either a math or language course, we have:

\[ M + L - B = \text{number of students taking either course} \]

Substituting in the known values gives us:

\[ 140 + 145 - B = 225 \]

Now, simplifying that equation:

\[ 285 - B = 225 \]

Solving for \( B \):

\[ B = 285 - 225 \] \[ B = 60 \]

Thus, the number of students taking both a math and a language course is \( \boxed{60} \).