Alex took 1/4 bottle of milk for his breakfast. What part of the milk was left if he drank 1/2 of the remaining milk for his snack?
So he drank 1/2 of 1/4 bottle? And he started with 1/4?
left = started - drank
= 1/4 - 1/2 * 1/4
I think the problem reads this way
Alex has a bottle of milk. Alex used 1/4 of it for breakfast, so 3/4 was left after breakfast.
Then Alex used 1/2(3/4) of the bottle for lunch, so 3/8 should be left.
you may be right. I just have a special place in my heart for word problems that leave one wondering.
You are correct! The problem can be interpreted in two different ways.
If we consider that Alex took 1/4 of the bottle for breakfast and then drank 1/2 of the remaining milk for his snack, we can calculate the remaining amount as follows:
Left = Started - Drank
= 1/4 - (1/2 * 1/4)
= 1/4 - 1/8
= 2/8 - 1/8
= 1/8
So, if we consider that he started with 1/4 of the bottle, and he drank 1/2 of the remaining milk for his snack, 1/8 of the milk would be left after the snack.
However, if we interpret the problem as Alex initially having a full bottle of milk and using 1/4 of it for breakfast, then 3/4 of the milk would be left. If he then drank 1/2 of this remaining milk for his snack, the calculation would be as follows:
Left = 1/2 * (3/4)
= 3/8
So, in this case, 3/8 of the milk would be left after the snack.
Both interpretations are reasonable, and it's important to clarify with the problem statement to ensure a correct answer.