Quan is shopping. He can buy 2 pairs of pants and 1 shirt for $79.85 ( before tax is added). He can but 1 pair of pants and 2 shirt for $69.85 (before tax is added). To figure out how much a shirt or a pair of pants costs,you must first identify the variables. What are the variables in this problem?

a) 2 shirts; 1 pair of pants
b) how much more pants cost than shirts
c) the number of combinations of pants and shirts
d) the price of pants, the price of shirts

"To figure out how much a shirt or a pair of pants costs"

Now which of your choices deals with the price of each item?

Shanne and Kate are preparing to go on long car trips with their families. Shane bought 8 books and 2 CDs for $73.50. Kates bought 3 books and 4 CDs for $69.95. Both totals were without tax. All of the nooks were the same price and all of the CDs cost the same. How much did a book cost?

a)$6.50
b)$4.50
c)$12.95
d)$5.95

The variables in this problem are:

d) the price of pants, the price of shirts.

To solve the problem, we can assign the following variables:

Let's say the price of pants is 'p' and the price of shirts is 's'.

Now, we can convert the given information into equations:

From the first scenario, we know that Quan can buy 2 pairs of pants and 1 shirt for $79.85. This can be written as:
2p + 1s = 79.85

From the second scenario, we know that Quan can buy 1 pair of pants and 2 shirts for $69.85. This can be written as:
1p + 2s = 69.85

By having these two equations, we can solve them simultaneously to find the values of 'p' and 's', which represent the price of pants and the price of shirts, respectively.