Final answer:
It would take Joe Smith approximately 8.68 years to 'waste away' to nothing.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate how many years it would take for Joe Smith to 'waste away' to nothing, we need to divide his weight in grams by the rate at which he loses weight per day in grams. First, we need to convert his weight from pounds to grams using the conversion factor: 1 lb = 454 g. So Joe Smith weighs 165 lbs * 454 g/lb = 74810 g. Then we divide his weight by the rate at which he loses weight per day: 74810 g ÷ 23.6 g/day = 3168.64 days. Lastly, we divide the result by the number of days in a year to find the number of years: 3168.64 days ÷ 365 days/year ≈ 8.68 years.