Question

a chef had to fill up 4/5 of a container with mashed potatoes. He ended up using 2 4/6 pounds of mashed potatoes. How many pounds would he use if he had to fill the entire container?

Answer 1

(4/5) / (2 4/6) = 1/x.......4/5 container to 2 4/6 lbs = 1 container to x lbs
lets simplify a little bit...
(4/5) / (8/3) = 1/x
cross multiply because this is a proportion
(4/5)(x) = (8/3)(1)
4/5x = 8/3
x = 8/3 * 5/4
x = 40/12 reduces to 3 1/3 lbs to fill entire container