Question

Priscilla has a number riddle for her friends. She wants them to guess what number she is thinking of. She tells them that her number can be represented by the x in the equation 3x - 10 = 26. Her friends guess {6, 12, 13, 36}. Using substitution, which guess was the correct number?

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Bot GPT 3.5]

To find the correct number, we can substitute each guess into the equation and see if it works.

1. Guess: x = 6
Substitute into the equation: 3(6) - 10 = 26
Simplify: 18 - 10 = 26
Simplify further: 8 = 26
The equation is not true, so 6 is not the correct number.

2. Guess: x = 12
Substitute into the equation: 3(12) - 10 = 26
Simplify: 36 - 10 = 26
Simplify further: 26 = 26
The equation is true, so 12 is the correct number.

3. Guess: x = 13
Substitute into the equation: 3(13) - 10 = 26
Simplify: 39 - 10 = 26
Simplify further: 29 = 26
The equation is not true, so 13 is not the correct number.

4. Guess: x = 36
Substitute into the equation: 3(36) - 10 = 26
Simplify: 108 - 10 = 26
Simplify further: 98 = 26
The equation is not true, so 36 is not the correct number.

Therefore, the correct number is 12.