Kerry is ready to celebrate his birthday and wants to have three cakes with his age in candles on each of them. Candles come in boxes of 12 and cost $2.5 a box. If the candles cost $5, how old is Kerry? Give the rationale and then the answer.
Let's think step by step. He needed 2 boxes of candles, because 5 / 2.5 = 2. He needed 24 candles because 2 x 12 = 24. He is 8 because 24 / 3 = 8.. The answer is: 8.

Gilbert grows herbs in his yard to use in his cooking. At the beginning of the spring, he planted three basil bushes, a parsley plant, and two kinds of mint. Halfway through spring, one of the basil plants dropped seeds from a flower and made an extra basil plant grow. However, a rabbit came by the garden near the end of spring and ate all the mint. How many herb plants did Gilbert have when spring ended? Give the rationale and then the answer.
Let's think step by step. Gilbert planted 3 + 1 + 2 = 6 herb plants. He gained a basil plant when one of the basil plants seeded a new plant, so he had 6 + 1 = 7 plants. The rabbit ate both mint plants, so Gilbert had 7 - 2 = 5 herb plants when spring ended.. The answer is: 5.

A new factory opens up and hires 20 people to make t-shirts. Each person makes on average 20 shirts per day during their 8-hour shift. The employees each get paid $12 an hour plus $5 per shirt they make. The company sells shirts for $35 each. Nonemployee expenses come out to $1000 a day. How much does the company make in profits per day? Give the rationale and then the answer.
Let's think step by step. Each employee gets paid 20 * 5 = $100 for the shirts they make. They also get paid 12 * 8 = $96 for hours worked. So they get a total of 100 + 96 = $196 per day. That means employee cost is 20 * 196 = $3920. The factory makes 20 * 20 = 400 shirts. So they make 400 * 35 = $14,000 from selling shirts. So they made a profit of 14,000 - 3,920 - 1,000 = $9,080.. The answer is: 9080.