Question

Jay discovers that if he multiplies his age by 3, reverses the number and them divides the answer by 3, the answer equals his older brother's age. Jay's mother points out that another way to find the brother's age is to simply reverse Jay's age. How old is Jay?

Answer 1

Jay's age = 13, 12, or 23

Explanation:

Let x and y represent the tens and units of Jay's age

We are given that his older brother's age = yx where;

xy + xy + xy = 3x3y is a 2 digit number of tens 3x and units 3y

Therefore, 3x < 10, and 3y < 10, which gives, x and y are each less than 3

Where, x < y given that Jay is the younger of the two brothers

We can have;

x = 1, 2, and y = 3, or 2, y = 3

Therefore, Jays age can be 13, 12, or 23, his brothers age can then be 31, 21, or 32