Question

Question
Jonny is solving this equation for n
: 8 + 3n = 20
. His first step is to subtract 8 from both sides of the equation. Why?(1 point)

Answer 1

Jonny's first step in solving the equation \( 8 + 3n = 20 \) is to subtract 8 from both sides in order to isolate the term with \( n \). The goal is to simplify the equation and make it easier to solve for \( n \). By subtracting 8 from both sides, he effectively removes the constant term on the left side:

\[
8 + 3n - 8 = 20 - 8
\]

This simplifies to:

\[
3n = 12
\]

Now the equation is simpler and can be solved for \( n \) by dividing both sides by 3. Subtracting 8 is a key step in rearranging the equation to focus on the variable \( n \).