Hi there Mary Dominguez, So what a vertical line test down is to find out if a particular graph is a function or not. What you do is take a vertical strait line and move it right to left or left to right, depending on your preference, along the X axis. The reason this works is a function can not have an x that has 2 different y values. If we use the vertical line test on a graph with say a graph that has (2,3) and (2,4) we can use the vertical line test and see that the line hits 2 points at once which means its not a function :)
You'll find it easier to understand if you illustrate the problem as what is shown in the attached picture. From the illustration and the problem description, two equations can be formulated:
HJ = 2JK
HJ + JK = HK
2JK + JK = 78
3JK = 78
JK = 78/3
JK = 26
I'm not sure what your book is saying about the matter but a cell phone is not usually an essential expense. If it is saying it is though, it would be an essential flexible expense.