Marco is reconstructing his expenses for the past two weeks. Here are the records of his expenses:
| Transaction | Cost ($) |
| :---------- | :------- |
| T-shirt | 20 |
| Gas | 22 |
| Movie | 13 |
| Video game | 39 |
| Jeans | 34 |
| Hat | 15 |
| Books | 31 |
Marco's bank statement says that he has an ending balance of $81. What is Marco's starting balance?
A. $255
B. $93
C. $174
D. $210
Answer (2)
Calculate the total expenses by summing up the cost of each transaction: E = 20 + 22 + 13 + 39 + 34 + 15 + 31 = 174 .
Use the formula: Starting Balance = Ending Balance + Total Expenses.
Substitute the given values: Starting Balance = 81 + 174 .
Calculate the starting balance: Starting Balance = 255 .
Explanation
Understanding the Problem We are given Marco's expenses for the past two weeks and his ending bank balance. We need to find his starting bank balance. The expenses are: T-shirt ($20), Gas ($22), Movie ($13), Video game ($39), Jeans ($34), Hat ($15), Books ($31). His ending bank balance is $81.
Calculating Total Expenses First, we need to calculate the total expenses. We sum up the cost of each transaction: E = 20 + 22 + 13 + 39 + 34 + 15 + 31
Total Expenses Value The total expenses are: E = 174 So, Marco spent a total of $174 over the past two weeks.
Relating Starting and Final Balance Let S be the starting balance and F be the final balance. We know that the final balance is the starting balance minus the total expenses: F = S − E We are given that the final balance is 81 , so F = 81 .
Solving for Starting Balance We can rearrange the equation to solve for the starting balance S: S = F + E Substituting the values we have: S = 81 + 174
Final Answer Therefore, the starting balance is: S = 255 Marco's starting bank balance was $255.
Examples
Imagine you are managing a lemonade stand. You start with a certain amount of money in your cash box (starting balance). Throughout the day, you spend money on lemons, sugar, and cups (expenses). At the end of the day, you count the money you have left (ending balance). By adding up all your expenses and adding that to your ending balance, you can figure out how much money you started with. This is exactly what Marco is doing to reconstruct his expenses and find his starting bank balance.
Marco's starting bank balance is calculated by adding his total expenses of $174 to his ending balance of $81. Therefore, his starting balance is $255. The correct answer is A. $255.
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