Final answer:
Thomas's age was calculated as 17 by setting up and solving a system of linear equations based on the given relationships of their ages. However, this answer is not present among the provided options, suggesting an error in the question or answer choices.
Step-by-step explanation:
The problem provided is a simple linear equation in the context of ages. Let's denote Thomas's age as T and Hullan's age as H. The problem gives us two pieces of information: Hullan's age is three times Thomas's age (H = 3T) and the sum of their ages is 68 (H + T = 68).
To solve for Thomas's age, we can replace H in the second equation with its equivalent from the first equation: 3T + T = 68, which simplifies to 4T = 68. Dividing both sides by 4 yields T = 68 / 4, which gives us T = 17. However, 17 is not one of the provided options, and it does not satisfy the condition when summing with Hullan's age. This suggests an error in the question or the answer choices.
Given these circumstances as a tutor, I must note that none of the provided answer choices are correct based on the information given in the question. Thus, we need to re-evaluate the information or obtain the correct answer choices.