Hi there, I have to figure out how old the youngest person will be when I am three times his age. I have
done the problem and I keep getting an answer that states how old we were 8 years ago. Currently I am 32
and the youngest person is 16. Please help! I think I am doing it correctly but I just want to make sure I am.
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Your are correct, as stated by the other person who responded.
Let the number of years when you will be 3 times the youngest person's age, be y
Since you're now 32, at that time, you will be 32 + y
And, since the youngest person is now 16, at that time, he/she will be 16 + y
As you will be 3 times the youngest person's age, then, we get the following equation for the number of years when that will be, as:
32 + y = 3(16 + y)
32 + y = 48 + 3y
y - 3y = 48 - 32
- 2y = 16
Number of years when you'll be THRICE the youngest person's age, or 
If you did it this way, you may've been confused by the answer, but it's quite correct. The value of y, - 8, actually indicates that the
time when you'll be 3 times the youngest person's age, is - 8, or 8 YEARS AGO.
So, 8 years ago, you were 32 - 8 = 24, and the youngest person was: 16 - 8 = 8. You were 24 when he/she was 8, which made you
3 times his/her age, 8 years ago (or - 8)
