The ratio of male to females is 2:5. There are 12 more females than males. How many males are there.

5 males

wrong!

your answer's ratio would be 5 : 17 which is not 2:5

number of males --- 2x
number of females --- 5x

5x - 2x = 12
3x = 12
etc ....

To solve this problem, let's assign variables to the unknown quantities. Let's say the number of males is represented by "x" and the number of females is represented by "y."

According to the problem, the ratio of males to females is 2:5. This means that the number of males divided by the number of females is equal to 2/5:

x / y = 2 / 5

We are also given that there are 12 more females than males:

y = x + 12

To determine the number of males, we need to find the value of x.

We can rearrange the second equation to express x in terms of y:

x = y - 12

Substituting this expression for x into the first equation:

(y - 12) / y = 2 / 5

Cross-multiplying:

5(y - 12) = 2y

Expanding and simplifying:

5y - 60 = 2y

Subtracting 2y from both sides:

5y - 2y = 60

3y = 60

Dividing both sides by 3:

y = 20

Now that we know the value of y, we can substitute it back into the equation for x:

x = y - 12

x = 20 - 12

x = 8

Thus, there are 8 males.