Hi, can you help me with a math problem kbin? It’s algebra, and it’s been a long time since I’ve had to do it. Can you explain to me how simplifying the terms comes out to 9/2 in the pictured equation please?

#AskKbin

  • @alianne
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    21 year ago

    x + 3x + ½x is the same as writing 1x + 3x + ½x. Because they’re all like terms, you can add the coefficients (the numbers in front of the x) together: 1 + 3 + ½ = 4½

    4½ can be rewritten as an improper fraction by multiplying the denominator (the bottom number) by the whole number (the big number before the fraction) and then adding the numerator (the top number), the result of which gets placed back over the denominator: 2 × 4 + 1 = 9, so you get 9/2