Question

Theresa has two brothers, Paul and Steve, who are both the same height. Paul says he is

16
inches shorter than
1
1
2
times Theresa’s height. Steve says he is
6
inches shorter than
1
1
3
times Theresa’s height. If they are both right, how tall is Theresa?

Answer 1

From given, we have,

Paul says he is 16 inches shorter than 1 1/2 times Theresa's height.

Steve says he's 6 inches shorter than 1 1/3 times Theresa's height.

Let the height of Theresa be "x" inches.

So, we get,

For Paul, 1 1/2 x - 16 = T

⇒ 3/2 x - 16 = T ......(1)

For Steve, 1 1/3 x - 6 = T

⇒ 4/3 x - 6 = T .........(2)

equating equations (1) and (2), we get,

3/2 x - 16 = 4/3 x - 6

6 - 16 = 4/3 x - 3/2 x

-10 = (8 - 9)/6 x

-60 = -x

x = 60 inches.

Therefore, Theresa is 60 inches tall.