Finley's pumpkin had a mass of

Question

\[6.5\] kilograms
\[(\text{kg})\] before he carved it. After it was carved, the pumpkin had a mass of
\[3.9\,\text{kg}\].
What was the percent decrease in the mass of the pumpkin?

Answer 1

To calculate the percent decrease, you can use the formula:

\[ \text{Percent Decrease} = \frac{\text{Original Mass} - \text{New Mass}}{\text{Original Mass}} \times 100\% \]

The original mass of the pumpkin is 6.5 kg and the new mass after carving is 3.9 kg. Plugging in these values gives us:

\[ \text{Percent Decrease} = \frac{6.5\,kg - 3.9\,kg}{6.5\,kg} \times 100\% \]

\[ \text{Percent Decrease} = \frac{2.6\,kg}{6.5\,kg} \times 100\% \]

\[ \text{Percent Decrease} = 0.4 \times 100\% \]

\[ \text{Percent Decrease} = 40\% \]

So the percent decrease in the mass of the pumpkin after carving is 40%.