Mathematics 2007 JAMB Past Questions - Question 37: The sum of the ages of musa and lawal is 28 years .After sharing a certain sum of money in the ratio of their ages ,musa gets N600 and Lawal N800. How old is lawal?

Correct Answer

B

Explanation

M + L = 28, M: L = 600 :800 = 3:4M /L = 3 / 4 M = 3 /4 Ltherefore 3 /4 L + L = 28 7L / 4 = 28therfore L = 4 x 28 / 7 = 16therfore Lawal is 16 years oldLet's assume Musa's age is x years and Lawal's age is y years.According to the given information, the sum of their ages is 28 years:x + y = 28 ...(1)After sharing a certain sum of money in the ratio of their ages, Musa gets N600 and Lawal gets N800:Musa's share / Lawal's share = Musa's age / Lawal's age600 / 800 = x / ySimplifying this equation, we get:3/4 = x / y ...(2)Now, we can solve the system of equations (1) and (2) to find the values of x and y.From equation (1), we can express x in terms of y:x = 28 - ySubstituting this value of x in equation (2):3/4 = (28 - y) / yCross-multiplying:3y = 4(28 - y)3y = 112 - 4y7y = 112y = 112 / 7y = 16Therefore, Lawal is 16 years old.