Question

Pearl writes down seven consecutive integers, and adds them up. The sum of the integers is equal to 6 times the largest of the seven integers. What is the smallest integer that Pearl wrote down?

Answer 1

The smallest integer that Pearl wrote down is 15.

Explanation:

7 consecutive integers. They are:

a

a+1

a+2

a+3

a+4

a+5

a+6

Sum of the integers:

a + a + 1 + a + 2 + a + 3 + a + 4 + a + 5 + a + 6 = 7a + 21

6 times the largest of the seven integers.

The largest is a + 6. So

7a + 21 = 6(a + 6)

7a + 21 = 6a + 36

7a - 6a = 36 - 21

a = 15

The smallest integer that Pearl wrote down is 15.