Final answer:
To find out how much money each person has, we can set up a proportion based on the given ratio of 12:7 and solve for x. However, the answer to this problem is not possible due to it resulting in negative money.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find out how much money each person has, we can set up a proportion based on the given ratio of 12:7. Let's assume the amount of money one person has is x dollars. The other person would then have (x + 850) dollars. Using the proportion 12/7 = x/(x + 850), we can solve for x.
Cross-multiplying gives us 12(x + 850) = 7x. Expanding the equation gives us 12x + 10200 = 7x. Subtracting 7x from both sides, we get 5x + 10200 = 0. Subtracting 10200 from both sides, we have 5x = -10200. Dividing both sides by 5, we find that x = -2040.
Since we can't have negative money, we must discard this negative solution. Therefore, it's not possible for one person to have $850 more than the other given the given ratio of 12:7.