The question is in the description

Question

Mervin had some cartons of milk. He sold 2/5 of the cartons of milk in the morning . He then sold 3/4 of the remainder in the afternoon .24 more cartons of milk were sold in the afternoon than the morning .How many cartons of milk did Mervin have at first?

Answer 1

First let's define the variable we need to solve:

 

C = Number of cartons of milk to start

 

Then let's put the amount of cartons sold in the morning and the afternoon in therms of C:

 

M = Number of cartons sold in the morning = 2/5(C) = 0.4C

A = Number of cartons sold in the afternoon = 3/4(1-2/5)(C) = .75(.6)C = .45C

 

Finally, create an equation for how the number of cartons sold in the morning relate to the number of cartons sold in the afternoon:

 

M + 24 = A

 

Now insert the terms for M and A as they relate to C and solve:

 

0.4C + 24 = 0.45C

0.05C = 24

C = 480 cartons