Final answer:
To find the number of students not on the student council, subtract the sum of students on the council who play sports (85) and who don't play sports (72) from the total number of students surveyed (200), leading to the equation x = 200 - 157. Solving this gives x = 43, meaning 43 students are not on the student council.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the number of students who are not on the student council, we can use a simple equation based on the total number of students surveyed and the number of students on the student council who either play a sport or do not.
Let's let x represent the number of students who are not on the student council. According to the information provided:
Adding the number of students on the student council who play a sport and those who do not gives us the total number of students on the student council:
85 (playing sports) + 72 (not playing sports) = 157 (total on student council)
Now, we deduct this number from the total number of students surveyed to find the number not on the student council:
200 (total students) - 157 (on student council) = x
Therefore, the equation to find the number of students who are not on the student council is:
x = 200 - 157
By solving this equation we get:
x = 43
So, 43 students are not on the student council.