Answer:
Explanation:
We can represent the 5 consecutive odd integers as:
1. x
2. x + 2
3. x + 4
4. x + 6
5. x + 8
"...the sum of the first three integers", then, is
x + (x + 2) + (x + 4)
That is "the sum of the last two plus 7", which is
(x + 6) + (x + 8) + 7.
The connecting word "is" means there is an equals sign right there. Therefore,
x + (x + 2) + (x + 4) = (x + 6) + (x + 8) + 7 which simplifies down to
3x + 6 = 2x + 21 after we combine like terms.
x = 15. That means the first integer is 15, the next one is 17, the third one is 19, the fourth one is 21, and the fifth one is 23.