Question

Tyrese has two pieces of cloth. One piece is 72 inches wide and the other piece is 90 inches wide. He wants to cut both pieces into strips of equal width that are as wide as possible. What is the largest width he can cut the strips?

Answer 1

Find the highest common factor of 72 and 96:

72:
1 X 72
8 X 9
2 X 4 3 X 3
2 X 2

1 X2^3 X 3^2

96:
1 X 96
4 X 24
2 X 2 6 X 4
2 X 3 2 X 2

1 X 2^5 X 3

Therefore the HCF is 3, so the largest width the strips can be cut is 3cm.