Suppose there are 20 questions on a multiple-choice test. If 25% of the answers are choice B, how many of the answers are not choice B?



Answer :

[tex]b: \frac{x}{20} \frac{25}{100} \\ 100x=500 \\ x=5 \\ others: 20-5=15[/tex]
This is one method: Part=Percent • Whole
Your part is x since you don't know it yet. Your percent is 25%. Your whole is 20. However, you have to turn 25% into a decimal, which would be .25.
Your new equation is now x=.25•20. When you multiply .25 by 20, you should get 5. Therefore, 5 is how many questions ARE B. However, you need to find the questions that aren't B. This is why you would have to subtract 5 from 20, giving you 15 questions that are NOT B. That would be your final answer.

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An easier way is to divide you whole by 100 and multiply it by the percentage. 20 divided by 100 is .2. Then you multiply it by 25, giving you 5.