sonia had shells of three different sizes 4/9 of the shells were big and 2/5 of the remainder were medium sized the rest of the shells were small what fraction of the shells were small

1 - (4/9 + (2/5)(5/9)) = 1/3

Well, let's break it down with a joke!

Why did the shell go to therapy? Because it had low self-esteem and wanted to feel small!

In this case, we know that 4/9 of the shells were big. So, 1 - 4/9 gives us the remainder of the shells, which is 5/9.

Now, 2/5 of this remainder were medium-sized, so we can calculate that as (2/5) * (5/9) = 2/9.

Therefore, the remaining fraction of shells would be 5/9 - 2/9 = 3/9, which simplifies down to 1/3.

So, to answer your question, 1/3 of the shells were small.

Please explain

To find the fraction of shells that are small, we need to follow these steps:

Step 1: Find the number of big shells.
Since 4/9 of the shells are big, we need to multiply 4/9 by the total number of shells to find how many shells are big.

Step 2: Find the remainder after removing the big shells.
To find the remainder, subtract the number of big shells from the total number of shells.

Step 3: Find the number of medium-sized shells.
Since 2/5 of the remainder are medium-sized shells, multiply 2/5 by the remainder from Step 2 to find how many shells are medium-sized.

Step 4: Find the number of small shells.
To find the number of small shells, subtract the sum of the big shells from Step 1 and medium-sized shells from Step 3 from the total number of shells.

Step 5: Calculate the fraction of small shells.
Divide the number of small shells from Step 4 by the total number of shells to find the fraction of small shells.

Let's now calculate step by step.

Step 1:
Number of big shells = (4/9) * Total number of shells

Step 2:
Number of shells remaining = Total number of shells - Number of big shells

Step 3:
Number of medium-sized shells = (2/5) * Number of shells remaining

Step 4:
Number of small shells = Total number of shells - Number of big shells - Number of medium-sized shells

Step 5:
Fraction of small shells = Number of small shells / Total number of shells

Now, if you provide me with the total number of shells, I can help you calculate the fraction of shells that are small.