We are given that the ratio of physics majors to non-physics majors is 3 to 5. Thus:tapanmittal wrote:In a certain physics class, the ratio of the number of physics
majors to non-physics majors is 3 to 5. If two of the physics
majors were to change their major to biology, the ratio would
be 1 to 2. How many physics majors are in the class?
(A) 16
(B) 18
(C) 24
(D) 30
(E) 32
physics : non-physics = 3x : 5x
Two physics majors leave the major and that results in a new ratio of 1 to 2. Thus:
(3x - 2)/(5x + 2) = 1/2
2(3x - 2) = 5x + 2
6x - 4 = 5x + 2
x = 6
Thus, there are 3 x 6 = 18 physics majors.
Answer:B
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