2012 AMC 12B Problems/Problem 3

Problem

For a science project, Sammy observed a chipmunk and squirrel stashing acorns in holes. The chipmunk hid 3 acorns in each of the holes it dug. The squirrel hid 4 acorns in each of the holes it dug. They each hid the same number of acorns, although the squirrel needed 4 fewer holes. How many acorns did the chipmunk hide?

$\textbf{(A)}\ 30\qquad\textbf{(B)}\ 36\qquad\textbf{(C)}\ 42\qquad\textbf{(D)}\ 48\qquad\textbf{(E)}\ 54$

Solution

If $x$ is the number of holes that the chipmunk dug, then $3x=4(x-4)$ , so $3x=4x-16$ , and $x=16$ . The number of acorns hidden by the chipmunk is equal to $3x = \boxed{\textbf{(D)}\ 48}$

2012 AMC 12B (Problems • Answer Key • Resources)
Preceded by Problem 2	Followed by Problem 4
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All AMC 12 Problems and Solutions

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2012 AMC 12B Problems/Problem 3

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