Final answer:
Lee can make 48 vests in total and the greatest number of vests Lee can make is 5.
Step-by-step explanation:
Lee is sewing vests and has 16 green buttons and 24 blue buttons. To find the total number of vests Lee can make, we need to determine the number of vests that can be made with each pair of buttons. The lowest common multiple (LCM) of 16 and 24 is 48, meaning that Lee can make 48 vests.
To find the greatest number of vests Lee can make, we need to divide the LCM by the sum of the green and blue buttons: (16 + 24) / 48 = 40 / 48 = 5 / 6. Since we cannot have a fraction of a vest, the greatest number of vests Lee can make is 5.