SOLUTION: Beth is two years older than Julio. Gerald is twice as old as Beth. Debra is twice as old as Gerald. The sum of their ages is 38. How old is Beth?

Question 433540: Beth is two years older than Julio. Gerald is
twice as old as Beth. Debra is twice as old as Gerald. The sum of their ages is 38. How old is Beth?
Answer by htmentor(1343) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
We can write the following equations for the ages from the information given:
B=2+J (1)
G=2B (2)
D=2G (3)
B+J+G+D=38
We can express D in terms of B using equation (2) and (3):
D=2(2B), or D=4B
Now we have expressions for all the ages in terms of B, so we can solve for B:
B+B-2+2B+4B=38 -> 8B=40 -> B = 5
So Beth is 5 years old
To check, we solve for the other ages.
J=B-2 -> J=3
G=2B -> G=10
D=2G -> D=20
The sum of the ages is 20+10+5+3=38
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