Question

Your paycheck is now $75,000. If it decreased by 25%, how much was your paycheck last year? * average fine for entering a National Forest Wilderness without a permit increased from$65 to $78. What rate of increase is this? *

Answer 1

On the first situation the previous salary was $100,000 and on the second one the raise was 20%.

Explanation:

On the first situation there was a decrease of 25% from the previous value, this mean that the present value is 100 - 25 = 75 % from what it was before. In order to calculate the previous value we can apply a rule of three as follows:

x -> 100%

75,000 -> 75%

x*75 = 75,000*100

x*75 = 7,500,000

x = 7,500,000/75 = 100,000

On the second situation there was an absolute increase of 78 - 65 = 13, this value represents the rate we want to know. In order to find the rate we can apply a rule of three as follows:

65 -> 100 %

13 -> x

1300 = 65*x

65*x = 1300

x = 1300/65 = 20 %

On the first situation the previous salary was $100,000 and on the second one the raise was 20%.