A grocery store clerk put only packages of flour tortillas and packages of corn tortillas on a shelf. The ratio of the number of packages of corn tortillas to the total number of packages on the shelf was 7 to 16.
Which number could be the number of packages of flour tortillas the clerk put on the shelf?
To solve this problem, we need to understand the given ratio and find the number of packages of flour tortillas that could be on the shelf.
Let's assume the number of packages of corn tortillas is represented by 7x, where x is a positive integer. The total number of packages on the shelf would be 16x, as per the given ratio.
Now, we need to find the number of packages of flour tortillas. Since the total number of packages on the shelf is the sum of the packages of corn tortillas and the packages of flour tortillas, we can subtract the number of packages of corn tortillas from the total to get the number of packages of flour tortillas.
The number of packages of flour tortillas = Total number of packages on the shelf - Number of packages of corn tortillas
Number of packages of flour tortillas = 16x - 7x
Number of packages of flour tortillas = 9x
So, the number of packages of flour tortillas is 9x.
Since x is a positive integer, the number of packages of flour tortillas would be a multiple of 9. Therefore, any number that is a multiple of 9 could be the number of packages of flour tortillas the clerk put on the shelf.