How much do you understand this math question?

[Misty Avich]

If a bat and ball cost $1.10 in total, and the bat is $1 more than the ball, how much would the ball cost?

The answer should be 10 cents but apparently it's not, and according to this article autistic people are supposed to understand that the answer is 5 cents. I've re-read the question and also this article but I still don't get it. 10 plus 100 is always 110, isn't it? Or do dollars and cents have a different rule?

MSN

 

[stevens]

Solve 2 equations simultaneously, by adding the second equation and the first:

bat + ball = 1.10 (first equation)
bat - ball = 1.00 (second equation)

2 bats + 0 ball = 2.10 (first equation + the second equation)
1 bat = 1.05 (multiply both sides of equation by 1/2)
So the bat is $1.05, and the ball is $0.05 for a total of $1.10

Now, I don't know the validity of diagnosing autism from this. My first impulse was the $0.10 answer, too so hooray, I'm autistic anyway!!

 

[Cutesie]

If a bat and ball cost $1.10 in total, and the bat is $1 more than the ball, how much would the ball cost?

The answer should be 10 cents but apparently it's not, and according to this article autistic people are supposed to understand that the answer is 5 cents. I've re-read the question and also this article but I still don't get it. 10 plus 100 is always 110, isn't it? Or do dollars and cents have a different rule?

Your answer of 10 cents would make the bat cost 90 cents more than the ball.

 

[Misty Avich]

I still don't get it.

I'm just going to do it in British money.

So the ball cost 10p, the bat costs £1, so in total they cost £1.10. Where does the 5 come from?

 

[Misty Avich]

Now, I don't know the validity of diagnosing autism from this. My first impulse was the $0.10 answer, too so hooray, I'm autistic anyway!!

I think it means the autism brain might be able to interpret the question differently, while bigger picture thinkers are more likely to see it as having the answer of 10 cents, which is the only way I can see it at the moment, even after the responses here. I just can't get it.

 

[Cutesie]

I still don't get it.

I'm just going to do it in British money.

So the ball cost 10p, the bat costs £1, so in total they cost £1.10. Where does the 5 come from?

If the ball costs 10p and the bat costs £1, what is the difference between those two numbers? 90p.

But we need the difference to be exactly £1.

Instead, let's make the ball cost only 5p. The bat will be £1 more - that's £1.05 - which makes a total of £1.10 - perfect.

@stevens explained how to do it using a mathematical formula, which is great but not for me, because I stopped paying attention in class when I was fifth grade.

 

[Misty Avich]

But 10p is correct too? I mean, the bat cost £1 more than the ball, so the two items in total can't be anything else but £1.10.
10+100 = 110.

 

[Cutesie]

But 10p is correct too? I mean, the bat cost £1 more than the ball, so the two items in total can't be anything else but £1.10.
10+100 = 110.

Ball = 10p
Bat is £1 more than the ball = £1.10
Total = £1.20

That's no good.

 

[Misty Avich]

Ball = 10p
Bat is £1 more than the ball = £1.10

Correct.

Total = £1.20

Where did the extra 10 come from?

That's no good.

Aaagghh!!

 

[Cutesie]

Don't worry - I'll keep trying as long as you'd like.

BALL........................ 0.10
BAT (£1 more)...... + 1.10

What's the total?

 

[Misty Avich]

Don't worry - I'll keep trying as long as you'd like.

Thanks. Dyscalculia can be a pain lol.

BALL........................ 0.10
BAT (£1 more)...... + 1.10

What's the total?

If the ball is 10p and the bat is a pound then in total it's £1.10. Actually the question did actually say that the total is £1.10 but is asking how much the ball cost, which should be 10p if the bat was a pound.

A bit like if something cost £10, and you buy another item that cost £100, the subtotal will be £110.

Maybe I'll go into a store tomorrow and test it out for myself.

 

[Cutesie]

If the ball is 10p and the bat is a pound then in total it's £1.10.

(Edited - I messed up one number.)

You're missing out on a vital word: "more". The bat is one pound more than the ball.

So if the ball would be ten pence, the bat would be £1.10, creating a total of £1.20 - which isn't what we need.

If, however, the ball is 5p, one pound more would be £1.05; add them together and we're good.

 

[Cutesie]

Can I make a joke, @Misty Avich? You don't like being called autistic; now you have "proof" that you're not!

 

[Cutesie]

If anyone notices that I wrote some sentences in a funny way, there's a reason for it. I hate putting a number that has a decimal at the end of a sentence, because then it looks weird when paired with the period.

 

[thejuice]

That's a great little brain teaser, I'm very rusty! First response was immediately 10 cents probably like a lot of people, but it's never the obvious answer is it..

 

[Cutesie]

First response was immediately 10 cents probably like a lot of people

It was also mine. This is actually a straightforward, easy question for someone who knows math(s). My mother answered "5 cents" in two seconds. (She's very much not autistic.) Like many stereotypes, the idea that we all do well with numbers is a fiction.

 

[thejuice]

It was also mine. This is actually a straightforward, easy question for someone who knows math(s). My mother answered "5 cents" in two seconds. (She's very much not autistic.) Like many stereotypes, the idea that we all do well with numbers is a fiction.

I used to be good as a kid but abilities diminish with non usage

 

[AprilR]

I also thought like you at first, i have to write down an equation for it to make sense haha.

 

[Crossbreed]

@Misty Avich,
You are told:

1. the bat costs £1.00 more than the ball &
2. they add up to £1.10 together.

Saying that the ball is 10p and the bat is £1.00,
makes #2 true &
makes #1 false.
For that answer, the bat costs 90p more than the ball, instead of £1.00 more.

If the bat is £1.05 and the ball is 5p, #1 & #2 are both true.
@stevens, in post #2, just showed how to find that answer using algebra.