The firefighter earns $30 / hour * 48 hours / week = $1440 in a week. In a month, the firefighter earns $1440 / week * 4 weeks / month = $5760. His total monthly payment is 1 / 3 * $5760 = $1920. His total monthly expenses are $1920 for rent + $500 for food + $1000 for taxes = $3420. The total amount of money the firefighter has after his expenses is $5760 - $3420 = $2340.
The answer: 2340
Reverse engineering the question: A firefighter is paid $30 per hour for a 48-hour workweek. He pays 1/3 of the money on rent and $500 on food and $1000 on taxes per month. Calculate the total amount of money the firefighter has after paying his monthly expenses.

He produces 5 * 20 = 100 liters of honey. That means he keeps 100 / 2 = 50 liters of honey. So he needs 50 / .5 = 100 jars.
The answer: 100
Reverse engineering the question: James buys jars for his honey. He has 5 hives that each produce 20 liters of honey. Each jar can hold .5 liters. How many jars will he need to buy if his friend is bringing his own jars for half the honey?

So far, Jesse has read 10 + 15 + 27 + 12 + 19 = 83 pages. That's 1 / 3 of the book, so the remainder of the book is twice as many pages, or 2 * 83 = 166 pages.
The answer: 166
Reverse engineering the question: Jesse is desperately trying to finish a book for a school book report due on Monday so he can play this weekend. Friday afternoon, he read the first 5 chapters, which were 10, 15, 27, 12, and 19 pages, respectively, before taking a break. To his dismay, he found that he was only 1/3 of the way through the book. How many pages does he still have to read?

There were 12 / 2 = 6 fallen cakes. Half of 6 fallen cakes were destroyed, for a total of 6 / 2 = 3 cakes.
The answer: 3
Reverse engineering the question:
Chastity made 12 angel food cakes to give to friends. She placed the cakes in boxes, and then walked them out to her car. But she had forgotten her keys. So, she placed the boxes of cakes in one stack on the hood of her car, and then she ran back into the house to get her keys. But before she returned, a black crow came, landed on the stack of cakes, and knocked over half of the stack. When Chastity returned, she picked up half of the fallen cakes, which were not damaged, but the rest of the cakes were destroyed. How many cakes were destroyed?