when working alone , painter w can paint a room in 2 hours , and working alone , painter x can paint the same room in a hours . when the two painters work together and independently , they can paint the room in 3 / 4 of an hour . what is the value of a ?
"rate * time = work let painter w ' s rate be w and painter x ' s rate be x r * t = work w * 2 = 1 ( if the work done is same throughout the question then the work done can be taken as 1 ) = > w = 1 / 2 x * a = 1 = > x = 1 / a when they both work together then their rates get added up combined rate = ( w + x ) r * t = work ( w + x ) * 3 / 4 = 1 = > w + x = 4 / 3 = > 1 / 2 + 1 / a = 4 / 3 = > 1 / a = ( 8 - 3 ) / 6 = 5 / 6 = > a = 6 / 5 = 1 [ 1 / 5 ] answer b"
add(subtract(4, 2), divide(const_1, add(2, 3)))