a book shelf has 7 shelves each measuring 4 feet 3 inches in length, the average width of a book is 3/4 inch how many books will the shelves hold

Question

a book shelf has 7 shelves each measuring 4 feet 3 inches in length, the average width of a book is 3/4 inch how many books will the shelves hold

Answer 1

Hello, Dominique from Las Vegas

 

Ok, the first thing that we need to do is figure out is how long each shelf is in inches.  We know that each foot is 12 inches.  So, 4 feet 3 inches will be (12)(4)=48 +3= 51 inches.  The problem states that, on average, each book is 3/4 inches in width.  3/4 as a decimal is .75.

 

To find out how many books each shelf will hold, divide 51/.75= 68.  Each shelf holds approximately 68 books.  Now, multiply that number by 7, since there are 7 shelves.  (68)(7)= 476.  The book shelf can hold 476 books.

 

Ok, Dominique, I hold this helps out.  Please, don't forget to rate my answer :)

 

D. Y. Taylor

Answer 2

Jack, I hope I am not too late to help.  We have books that are 3/4-inch wide and we need to know how many will fit, right?

 

How many inches is 4 feet, 3 inches?  4 x 12 = 48.  48+3=51, so 51 inches.

 

If I said the books are 3 inches wide, what would you do?  You'd divide 51 by 3 and get that 17 books fit.

 

Instead, we need to divide 51 by 3/4.  Remember that to divide fractions, you flip the second and multiply.

 

So, we have 51/1 x 4/3 = 204/3 = 68 books.

 

Hope this helps!