A farmer died and left 17 cows to be divided among three
workers. The first worker was to receive of the cows, the second worker was to
receive of the cows, and the third worker was to receive of the cows. The
executor of the farmer’s estate realized that 17 cows could not be divided into
halves, thirds, or ninths and so added a neighbor’s cow to the farmer’s. With 18
cows, the executor gave 9 cows to the first worker, 6 cows to the second worker,
and 2 cows to the third worker. This accounted for the 17 cows, so the executor
returned the borrowed cow to the neighbor. Explain why this works.
1 answer
what is one half, one third, and one ninth added? Is it a whole?