Subject: General Aptitude · Chapter: Ratio and Proportion · Exam: · Marks: · Difficulty:
What was the ratio between the ages of P and R four years ago? I. The ratio between the present ages of P and Q is 3 : 4. II. The ratio between the present ages of Q and R is 4 : 5.
Answer
SELF-PRACTICE — the source book printed no answer.
Nothing is invented here, so this question has no answer on record.
Explanation
From both I and II, we have: $P:Q=3:4$ and $Q:R=4:5 \Rightarrow P:R=3:5$. Let the present ages of $P$ and $R$ be $3x$ and $5x$ respectively. Then, ratio of their ages 4 years ago $=\frac{3x-4}{5x-4}$, which cannot be evaluated. Thus, the answer cannot be obtained even from both I and II taken together. $\therefore$ Correct answer is (d).
Explanation as extracted from the printed page; notation may be imperfect.