the sum of a number and its reciprocal is 53/14. find the number?

Answer 1

2/7 + 7/2=
get like denominators to add
4/14 + 49/14= 53/14

Answer 2

Let x represent the number. Let 1/x represent the
reciprocal of the number. x+1/x=53/14
53/14=3 11/14 You can start by plugging in numbers, until
you narrow down the range. You know the number is greater
than 2, because 2+1/2=2.5, which is less than 3 11/14.
3 is also no good, because 3+1/3=3 1/3. 4 is too large.
Try 3.5 3.5+1/3.5= 3.5+2/7=3.5+4/14. 3.5*14=49
49/14+4/14=53/14. The correct answer is 3.5 or 3 1/2.