Question

Divide $ 144 $ by $ 15 $ .

Answer 1

Hint: As we can clearly see that the question given requires us to divide $ 144 $ by $ 15 $ . Whenever we see a question like this, our approach should be to simplify it. Thus, we need to write it in division format as a complex fraction and then expand and work on it. Then, we write the fraction in the simplest form after cancelling the common factor between numerator and denominator.

Complete step-by-step answer:
In the given problem, we are required to find the quotient when $ 144 $ is divided by $ 15 $ .
So, we know that the division of a number by another number is as good as multiplying the number by the multiplicative inverse of the same number.
We know that the multiplicative inverse of $ 15 $ is $ \left( {\dfrac{1}{{15}}} \right) $ .
Hence, we multiply the given number $ 144 $ by $ \left( {\dfrac{1}{{15}}} \right) $ to get the desired answer of the given problem.
So, we first write it in fraction format as: $ 144 \times \left( {\dfrac{1}{{15}}} \right) = \left( {\dfrac{{144}}{{15}}} \right) $ .
Now, we have to convert the improper fraction into decimal form to find the quotient when $ 144 $ is divided by $ 15 $ .
But before doing that, we cancel the common factors in the numerator and denominator of the fraction $ \left( {\dfrac{{144}}{{15}}} \right) $ . So, we notice that $ 3 $ is a common factor in both numerator and denominator.
Expressing the numerator and denominator after factoring out $ 3 $ , we get,
 $ \Rightarrow \left( {\dfrac{{48 \times 3}}{{5 \times 3}}} \right) $
Cancelling the common factor $ 3 $ between the numerator and denominator, we get,
 $ \Rightarrow \left( {\dfrac{{48}}{5}} \right) $
Now, we know that division by powers of ten is comparatively easier. So, we multiply both the numerator and denominator by $ 2 $ to get $ 10 $ as the denominator.
So, we get,
 $ \Rightarrow \left( {\dfrac{{48}}{5} \times \dfrac{2}{2}} \right) = \dfrac{{96}}{{10}} $
Now, we know that division of any number by $ 10 $ can be done easily by just shifting the decimal point one digit to the left of the former place. So, in the numerator of the given fraction, there is no decimal point. So, we will introduce the decimal point to the left of one digit. So, we get,
 $ \Rightarrow \dfrac{{96}}{{10}} = 9.6 $
Hence, the quotient obtained on division of $ 144 $ by $ 15 $ is $ 9.6 $ .
So, the correct answer is “9.6 ”.

Note: Numerator and denominator never get cut through while division, they only get cut in multiplication. Also, division of a number by a rational number is as good as multiplying the number by the multiplicative inverse of the same rational number. Lastly, it is good to convert your answer from improper fraction to decimal form or mixed fraction form even if it is not mentioned in the question otherwise. Take utmost care while doing the calculations as it changes the final answer of the problem. The fractions in which the numerator is greater than the denominator are called improper fractions.