2150.62 – Lowest Terms?


For certain values of the whole number xx, the fraction 9x+76x+9\dfrac{9x+7}{6x + 9} is not in lowest terms. Find some examples of this and explain what is going on.


Solution

Using a spread sheet perhaps, you'll find that some of these xx values are 5, 18, 31, 44, 57, and so on. Notice that these are in the form x=13k+5x = 13k+5. Plugging in, we can see what is happening:

9x+76x+9=9(13k+5)+76(13k+5)+9=117k+5278k+39=139k+134136k+133=13(9k+4)13(6k+3)\begin{aligned}\dfrac{9x+7}{6x + 9} &= \dfrac{9(13k+5) + 7}{6(13k+5) + 9} \\[1em]&= \dfrac{117k+ 52}{78k+ 39} \\[1em]&= \dfrac{13 \cdot 9k+ 13 \cdot 4}{13 \cdot 6k+ 13 \cdot 3} \\[1em]&= \dfrac{13 (9k+4)}{13 (6k+3)}\end{aligned}

My, my!