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Julian, an experienced motorcycle mechanic, recently decided to share his expertise by

writing and selling an ebook. After conducting some market research, Julian knows that if he
charges x dollars per download, he will sell -4x + 160 downloads of his ebook in his first
year.
The online bookstore will charge Julian 25% of the amount he charges per download. So,
Julian will learn 75% of the amount he charges per download, or 0.75x dollars, in profit.
What two prices can Julian charge per download to earn exactly $900 in profit in his first
year?

1 Answer

3 votes

Answer:

Step-by-step explanation:

We know that Julian's profit per download is 0.75x dollars. Let's start by setting up an equation for his total profit, given the number of downloads:

Total profit = (profit per download) x (number of downloads)

We also know that the number of downloads Julian will sell is given by the equation:

Number of downloads = -4x + 160

So we can substitute this expression for the number of downloads into the equation for total profit:

Total profit = (profit per download) x (-4x + 160)

Simplifying this expression:

Total profit = -3x(4x - 160)

Total profit = -12x^2 + 480x

To earn exactly $900 in profit, we set the total profit equal to 900 and solve for x:

-12x^2 + 480x = 900

Dividing both sides by -12:

x^2 - 40x + 75 = 0

We can solve this quadratic equation using the quadratic formula:

x = (-b ± sqrt(b^2 - 4ac)) / 2a

Plugging in a = 1, b = -40, and c = 75:

x = (-(-40) ± sqrt((-40)^2 - 4(1)(75))) / 2(1)

x = (40 ± sqrt(400)) / 2

x = 20 ± 10

So the two prices Julian can charge per download to earn exactly $900 in profit in his first year are $10 and $30.

To verify, we can calculate Julian's profit for each price:

At $10 per download, Julian will sell -4(10) + 160 = 120 downloads. His profit per download is 0.75(10) = $7.50, so his total profit will be 120 x 7.50 = $900.

At $30 per download, Julian will sell -4(30) + 160 = 40 downloads. His profit per download is 0.75(30) = $22.50, so his total profit will be 40 x 22.50 = $900.

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