Question

A fruit stand has to decide what to charge for their produce. They need $ 1 0 $10dollar sign, 10 for 4 44 apples and 4 44 oranges. They also need $ 1 2 $12dollar sign, 12 for 6 66 apples and 6 66 oranges. We put this information into a system of linear equations. Can we find a unique price for an apple and an orange?

Answer 1

Given 4 apples and 4 oranges cost = $10.

6 apples and 6 oranges = $12.

Let us assume cost of each apple = $x.

Cost of each orange = $y.

4 apples and 4 oranges cost can be given by equation:

4x+4y = 10.

Dividing both sides by 4, we get

x+y = 2.50   ---------------equation (1)

6 apples and 6 oranges cost can be given by equation:

6x+6y = 12.

Dividing both sides by 6, we get

x+y =2    ---------------equation (2).

We can see from equation (1) and equation (2), that x+y equals 2 and 2.5.

But that doesn't seem to be true.

So, we could just say that we can't find a unique price for an apple and an orange for the given information.