Using proportions, it is found that the number of marbles that Tom had is given by:
Proportions
- Initially, Tom had x marbles.
- He gave Bob [tex]\frac{1}{4}[/tex] of it, that is, [tex]\frac{1}{4}x[/tex].
- Bob gave [tex]\frac{1}{3}[/tex] of his share of [tex]\frac{1}{4}x[/tex] to John, hence John's amount is [tex]\frac{1}{12}x[/tex].
- Kevin receives half of John, hence Kevin's amount is [tex]\frac{1}{24}x[/tex].
- After giving [tex]\frac{1}{6}[/tex] of his amount to Michael, Kevin is left with 5 marbles, that is, [tex]\frac{5}{6}[/tex] of his amount of [tex]\frac{1}{24}x[/tex] is 5.
Then:
[tex]\frac{5}{6}\left(\frac{1}{24}x\right) = 5[/tex]
[tex]\frac{5}{144}x = 5[/tex]
[tex]x = 144[/tex]
Hence, option D is correct.
To learn more about proportions, you can take a look at https://brainly.com/question/24372153
