Multiple choice

A publishing company spends \$12 to print each book. The books are sold through an online retailer that charges the company a handling fee equal to 15% of the sales price of each book. The company's profit for each book is the sales price minus the printing cost and the handling fee. If the sales price of each book is \$40, which equation can be used to find the number of books, b, the company must sell to make a profit of $11,900?

  1. (40(1 − 0.15) − 12)b = 11,900

  2. (40 − 12)(1 − 0.15)b = 11,900

  3. 0.85(40) − 12b = 11,900

  4. (0.15(40) + 12)b = 11,900
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A Correct answer
Explanation

Profit per book = Sales Price - Printing Cost - Handling Fee. Handling fee = 0.15 * 40 = 6. Profit = 40 - 12 - 0.15 * 40 = 40(1 - 0.15) - 12. For b books, total profit is (40(1 - 0.15) - 12) * b = 11,900.

AI explanation

The net profit per book is the selling price minus both the printing cost and the 15% handling fee, calculated as $40 minus $12 minus 0.15 times $40. This simplifies to 40 times (1 - 0.15) minus 12 per book. To find the total profit for b books, this per-book profit is multiplied by b, yielding the equation (40(1 - 0.15) - 12)b = 11,900.

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