In a charity walkathon, Lori and Nicholas walked 72.7 km.
Lori walked 8.9 km farther than Nicholas.
a) Create a linear system to model this situation.
b) Solve the system to determine how far each person walked.
Let x represent the distance that Nicholas walked (in km).
Therefore, Lori walked x + 8.9 km.
The total distance they walked is 72.7 km, so we have the following linear system:
x + (x + 8.9) = 72.7
Simplifying the equation, we get:
2x + 8.9 = 72.7
Subtracting 8.9 from both sides of the equation, we get:
2x = 63.8
Dividing both sides of the equation by 2, we get:
x = 31.9
Therefore, Nicholas walked 31.9 km and Lori walked 31.9 + 8.9 = 40.8 km.