Question

The sum of the page numbers on the facing pages of a book is 553. Find the smaller page number.

Answer 1

Answer: To solve this problem, we can use algebra. Let x be the smaller page number. Then, the larger page number is x + 1, since the pages are facing each other. We know that the sum of these two numbers is 553, so we can set up the equation:

x + (x+1) = 553

Next, we will solve for x by combining like terms:

2x + 1 = 553

Now we will subtract 1 from both sides of the equation:

2x = 552

Finally, we will divide both sides by 2:

x = 276

So the smaller page number is 276.

Explanation: