Question

as part of a lesson on earthquakes, a science class is researching the movement of a nearby fault line. the fault line moved 3/5 of an inch during the past year and 7 inches the year before. how far did the fault line move in all? write your answer as a fraction or as a whole or mixed number. inches

Explanation:

Step1: Convert the whole number to a fraction with denominator 5

To add \(7\) and \(\frac{3}{5}\), we write \(7\) as \(\frac{7\times5}{5}=\frac{35}{5}\)

Step2: Add the two fractions

Now add \(\frac{35}{5}\) and \(\frac{3}{5}\). Using the rule \(\frac{a}{c}+\frac{b}{c}=\frac{a + b}{c}\), we have \(\frac{35+3}{5}=\frac{38}{5}\)

Step3: Convert to a mixed number

Divide \(38\) by \(5\): \(38\div5 = 7\) with a remainder of \(3\). So \(\frac{38}{5}=7\frac{3}{5}\)

Answer:

\(7\frac{3}{5}\) inches