Question

While watching a circus show, I counted out the number of acrobats and elephants. I counted 40 legs and 15 heads. How many acrobats did I see in the show?

Answer 1

y=10 ( number of acrobat)

Explanation:

let x be the elephant and y the acrobat

elephant has 4 legs and acrobat 2

4x+2y=40

x+y=15 ⇒x=15-y

substitute for x in the equation:

4(15-y)+2y=40

60-4y+2y=40

-2y=40-60

y=-20/-2

y=10 ( number of acrobat)

number of elephant=15-10=5 elephants