Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

Three people picked 65 apples altogether. At the first tree they each picked the same number of apples. At the second tree they each picked 3 times as many as they picked at the first tree. When they finished at the third tree, the group had 5 times as many apples as they had when they started at that tree. At the fourth tree the group picked just 5 apples. How many apples did each person pick at the first tree?

  1. 1

  2. 2

  3. 3

  4. 4
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A Correct answer
Explanation

Let x be the apples each person picked at the first tree. At tree 1: 3x total. At tree 2: each picked 3x, so 9x total (running total 12x). At tree 3: finished with 5× starting amount = 60x total, so picked 48x at tree 3. At tree 4: 5 apples. Equation: 3x + 9x + 48x + 5 = 65, so 60x = 60 and x = 1. The key insight is tracking the cumulative total after each tree.

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