Respuesta :
Explicación paso a paso:
Let's break this problem down step by step.
First, let's represent the number of stamps Melissa, Mavis, and Rashidah have:
Let's use the variables:
M = number of stamps Melissa has
V = number of stamps Mavis has
R = number of stamps Rashidah has
From the given information, we know that:
1) M + V + R = 234 (Melissa, Mavis, and Rashidah have 234 stamps altogether)
2) Melissa gives 16 stamps to Mavis and 24 stamps to Rashidah, so after giving the stamps, Melissa has:
M - 16 - 24 = M - 40 stamps
3) We also know that after giving the stamps, Melissa has 3 times as many stamps as Mavis:
M - 40 = 3V
4) Additionally, we know that Mavis has twice as many stamps as Rashidah:
V = 2R
We can now use this information to solve for the initial number of stamps Melissa had.
First, let's express V in terms of R using the relationship V = 2R:
V = 2R
Now, substitute V = 2R into the equation M - 40 = 3V:
M - 40 = 3(2R)
M - 40 = 6R
We also know that M + V + R = 234, so we can substitute V and R in terms of M into this equation:
M + 2R + R = 234
M + 3R = 234
Now we have two equations:
M - 40 = 6R
M + 3R = 234
We can solve these equations simultaneously to find the values of M and R.
By solving for R in terms of M from the second equation:
R = (234 - M)/3
Then substitute R into the first equation:
M - 40 = 6((234 - M)/3)
Simplify and solve for M. After finding the value of M, we can then determine how many stamps Melissa had at first.