He had 20 red marbles and took away 3 leaving 20 - 3 = 17 red marbles. He took 4 times as many blue marbles as red marbles which is 4 * 3 = 12 blue marbles. He took 12 blue marbles from 30 leaving 30 - 12 = 18 blue marbles. He now has 17 + 18 = 35 marbles left.
The answer: 35
Reverse engineering the question: A magician has a top hat with 20 red marbles and a top hat with 30 blue marbles. If he takes away 3 red marbles and four times as many blue marbles as red marbles (without looking), how many marbles in total does he have left?
Reasoning and answer: At the second store, she tried on 7 + 2 = 9 pairs of shoes. Therefore, at the first three stores, she tried on 7 + 9 + 0 = 16 pairs of shoes. At the fourth store, she tried on 16 * 2 = 32 pairs of shoes. Thus, in total, she tried on 16 + 32 = 48 pairs of shoes.
The answer: 48
What was the question?
Question: Helga went shopping for a new pair of shoes. At the first store, she tried on 7 pairs of shoes. At the second store, she tried on 2 more pairs than at the first store. At the third store, she did not try on any shoes, but she did buy a scarf. But at the fourth store, she tried on twice as many pairs of shoes as she did at all three other stores combined, before finally choosing a pair to buy. What is the total number of pairs of shoes Helga tried on before buying her new shoes?
When Tate bought 2 more tickets, the total number of tickets he has increased to 32 + 2 = 34 tickets. Peyton has half as many tickets, meaning he has 1 / 2 * 34 = 17 tickets. Together, they have 34 + 17 = 51 tickets.
The answer: 51
Reverse engineering the question: Tate has 32 tickets for a particular game. He then buys two more tickets for the game. His friend Peyton, who has half as many total tickets, drives with him to the game. How many tickets do Tate and Peyton have together?
Reasoning and answer: The second bus is carrying 12 * 2 = 24 people. The third bus has 24 6 = 18 people. The fourth bus has 12 + 9 = 21 people on it. In total, there are 12 + 24 + 18 + 21 = 75 people on the buses.
The answer: 75
What was the question?
Question: The school is organizing a trip to the museum. 4 buses were hired to take the children and teachers to their destination. The second bus has twice the number of people on it as the first bus. The third bus has 6 fewer people than the second bus. The fourth bus has 9 more people than the first bus. If the first bus has 12 people, how many people are going to the museum in total?
Over 12 hours, a leak of 1.5 ounces per hour for 12 hours would generate 1.5 * 12 = 18 ounces. A bucket that can hold twice the volume leaked is 18 * 2 = 36 ounces.
The answer: 36
Reverse engineering the question: Kevin's fish tank was leaking slowly at a rate of 1.5 ounces per hour. He planned to go to the fish tank store later that day to get a new tank, but it may be as long as 12 hours before he can return home with the new tank. Therefore, to collect the leaking fluid over that time, he placed a bucket underneath the tank that could hold twice the amount of fluid that would leak over 12 hours. What size bucket, in ounces, did he use?
He spend $1.5 on soda because 2 - .5 = 1.5. He bought 6 ounces of soda because 1.5 / .25 = 6.
The answer: 6
Reverse engineering the question:
Peter goes to the store to buy a soda. The soda costs $.25 an ounce. He brought $2 with him and leaves with $.50. How many ounces of soda did he buy?