A mail truck picks up two boxes of mail from the post office. The total weight of the boxes is 38 pounds. One box is 4 pounds heavier than the other box. How much does each box weigh?

she was supposed to add the hours(38.5) and multiply the amount of money she earned(7.50) resulting in $288.75 .

correct me if i'm wrong and if it is i'm truly sorry.

hello from mrbilldoesmath!

answer:

(7 x + 6 y) (49 x^2 - 42 x y + 36 y^2)

discussion:

the trick is to recognize that 343 = 7^3 and 216 = 6^3 and, in general,

a^3 + b^3 =   (a + b) (a^2 - a b + b^2).

in our case

343x^3+216y^3   =   (7x)^3 + (6y)^3

so take a = 7x and b = 6y in the above equation to get the answer.

you,

mrb