Question 840205
To solve, let's change the word problem into an equation. 


The problem says that the boy is 10 years old and the mother is 37 years old.  Since we do not know the number of years in which the mother will be twice as old as the son, we will express this number of years in terms of x.  


So, in a certain number of years added to the mothers age, she will be twice as old as her son when his age is added to that same number of years.  In other words:


37 + x = 2(10 + x)


Now that we have our formula, all we need to do now is solve for x.  First, let's distribute the 2 to everything inside the parenthesis.  This gives us:


37 + x = 20 + 2x


Next, subtract 20 from both sides, giving us:


17 + x = 2x


Finally, subtract x from both sides:


17 = x


Therefore, in 17 years, the mother will be twice as old as her son.