Beginning in the 1830s, what commodity did british merchants use to increase access to chinese markets?

Opium. It was easily produced in neighboring British-controlled India and was highly addictive. When China banned the trade, Britain declared war on them. After the war China had to open major port cities for trade and give the British the coastal city of Hong Kong.

simplify brackets

8 - 2a - 7 = a + 40

simplify 8 - 2a - 7 to -2a + 1

-2a + 1 = a + 40

add 2a to both sides

1 = a + 40 + 2a

simplify a + 40 + 2a to 3a + 40

1 = 3a + 40

subtract 40 from both sides

1 - 40 = 3a

simplify 1 - 40 o -39

-39 = 3a

divide both sides by 3

-39/3 = a

simplify 39/3 to 13

-13 = a

switch sides

a = -13

the anwser is missions