Estelle made a fruit salad with 3 1/2 pounds of melon and 1 1/6 pounds of berries. How many pounds of fruit did Estelle use in all?
Write your answer as a fraction or as a whole or mixed number.
pounds
MAKE SURE IT’S RIGHT AND CORRECT AND NOT WRONG
To find the total weight of the fruit salad, we need to add the weight of the melon and the weight of the berries.
The weight of the melon is given as 3 1/2 pounds. This can be written as the improper fraction 7/2 pounds.
The weight of the berries is given as 1 1/6 pounds. This can be written as the improper fraction 7/6 pounds.
Adding the two fractions together: 7/2 + 7/6
To add these fractions, we need a common denominator. The least common multiple of 2 and 6 is 6.
Converting both fractions into sixths: 7/2 = 21/6 and 7/6 remains unchanged.
Now we can add the fractions: 21/6 + 7/6 = 28/6
Simplifying this fraction, we can divide both the numerator and denominator by 2: 28/6 = 14/3.
So, Estelle used 14/3 pounds of fruit in total, which can also be expressed as a mixed number: 4 2/3 pounds. Answer: \boxed{14/3 \text{ pounds or } 4\, 2/3 \text{ pounds}}.