word problems

Question

A candy bar weighs 4 ounces. If you only eat half of the remaining candy bar with each bite. How many bites have you taken when there is exactly 0.125 ounces left

 

Would you 0.125÷4?

Answer 1

The amount of candy bar left after "n" bites is 1/2ⁿ. So for n=3, 1/2³ = 1/8 = 0.125. So the answer is three bites.

 

Another way to think of it:

• After 1 bite your have 1/2 of the candy bar left
• On your second bite, you bite 1/2 of the 1/2 bar that's left, leaving 1/4 of the candy bar.
• On the third bite, you bite off 1/2 of the 1/4 bar left, leaving 1/8 = 0.125.