Andy had some coins. He gave ²₃ of his coins to Seth and bought 4 new coins. After that, he gave ³₈ of his remaining coins to his brother and bought another 7 new coins. In the end, Andy had 47 coins.

1. How many coins did Andy give to his brother?
2. How many coins did Andy have at first?

(a)
Fraction of  his remaining coins after he gave to his brother
= 1 - ³₈
= ⁵₈

⁵₈ of his remaining coins = 47 - 7 = 40
¹₈ of his remaining coins = 40 ÷ 5 = 8
³₈ of his remaining coins = 3 x 8 = 24

Number of coins that Andy gave to his brother = 24

(b)
⁸₈ of his remaining coins = 8 x 8 = 64

Fraction of his total coins after he gave to Seth
= 1 - ²₃
= ¹₃

¹₃ of his total coins = 64 - 4 = 60
³₃ of his total coins = 3 x 60 = 180

Number of coins that Andy had at first = 180 

Answer(s): (a) 24; (b) 180