Final answer:
To find out how many apples and oranges Maria bought, set up a system of equations using the total number of fruits and the total amount spent. Solve the system to find that she bought 15 apples and 5 oranges.
Step-by-step explanation:
To solve the problem, we can use a system of equations based on the given information. Let x be the number of apples Maria bought and y be the number of oranges. We have:
- The total number of fruits: x + y = 20
- The total amount spent on fruits: 0.40x + 0.35y = 7.75
We now have a system of two equations to solve:
- x + y = 20
- 0.40x + 0.35y = 7.75
Multiplying the second equation by 100 to eliminate decimals, we get:
- 40x + 35y = 775
Using the substitution method, we can solve for y in the first equation: y = 20 - x. Now we can substitute y in the second equation:
- 40x + 35(20 - x) = 775
Then we have:
- 40x + 700 - 35x = 775
- 5x = 775 - 700
- 5x = 75
- x = 15
So Maria bought 15 apples. Since we know the total number of fruits is 20, we can find out the number of oranges:
- y = 20 - x
- y = 20 - 15
- y = 5
Maria bought 15 apples and 5 oranges.