A segment is divided into two parts having lengths in the ratio of 5:3. If the difference between the length of the parts is 6", find the length of the longest part.

3
9
15
24

Question

A segment is divided into two parts having lengths in the ratio of 5:3. If the difference between the length of the parts is 6", find the length of the longest part.

3
9
15
24

anonymous · Answer

It is a system of equations. The question states that the ration between the segments is 5:3. So let x equal one segment and y equal second segment. So we have $${x \over y}={3\over5}$$ Then it says the difference is 6. So we have $$y-x=6$$ x is being subtracted from y because from our first equation y is larger than x and the difference is positive not negative.