Question

I have a kit for constructing a chicken coop. The kit comes with 10-foot-long beams. The instructions say to cut each beam into two pieces such that one piece is 3 times the length of the other. How many feet long should the long piece be?

Answer 1

Each 10-foot-long beam should be cut into two pieces where one piece is 3 times the length of the other.

Let's call the shorter piece "x".

According to the instructions, the longer piece should be 3 times the length of the shorter piece, so it would be:

3x

We know that the sum of the two pieces should be 10 feet:

x + 3x = 10

Simplifying the equation:

4x = 10

Dividing both sides by 4:

x = 2.5

So the shorter piece should be 2.5 feet long, and the longer piece should be:

3x = 3(2.5) = 7.5

Therefore, the longer piece should be 7.5 feet long.

Answer 2

Answer: long piece should be 7.5 feet long.

Step-by-step explanation: Let x be the length of the shorter piece in feet. Then, the length of the longer piece is 3x. The sum of the lengths of the two pieces is 10 feet, so we have:

x + 3x = 10

Simplifying the equation, we get:

4x = 10

Dividing both sides by 4, we find:

x = 2.5

Therefore, the length of the shorter piece is 2.5 feet, and the length of the longer piece is:

3x = 3(2.5) = 7.5 feet.

So the long piece should be 7.5 feet long.