Question

These are the first sentences in the short story, "The Gift of the Magi," by O. Henry:

"One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies."

Model the scenario with an equation. Let q be the number of quarters, d be the number of dimes, and n be the number of nickels.

25 q + 10 d + 5 n + 60 = 1.87
0.25 q + 0.10 d + 0.5 n + 0.60 = 187
q + d + n + 60 = 187
25 q + 10 d + 5 n + 60 = 187

Answer 1

25 q + 10 d + 5 n + 60 = 187

Explanation:

$1.87 = 1.87 x 100 = 187 cents or 187 pennies

Each quarter is worth 25 pennies so q quarters = 25q pennies

Each dime is worth 10 pennies so d dimes = 10d pennies

Each nickel is worth 5 pennies so n nickels = 5n pennies

so 25q + 10d + 5n + 60 = 187