Calculating percentages is a fundamental mathematical skill that we use in our daily lives. It is an essential concept that allows us to understand the relationship between a part and a whole. For instance, if you want to find out how much of something is in a whole, you need to calculate the percentage. In this article, we will discuss how to find out what percent 18 is of 40.
Firstly, we need to understand what a percentage is. A percentage is a way of expressing a number as a fraction of 100. Percent means per hundred, and it is denoted by the symbol "%". So, when we say that 18 is what percent of 40, we are essentially asking, "what fraction of 40 is 18, expressed as a percentage?"
To find out what percent 18 is of 40, we can use a simple formula:
% = (part/whole) x 100
In this formula, the "part" is the number we want to express as a percentage, the "whole" is the total amount or the denominator, and the "%" symbol denotes the percentage.
Using this formula, we can plug in the values for our problem:
% = (18/40) x 100
Simplifying the expression by dividing 18 by 40 gives us:
% = 0.45 x 100
Multiplying 0.45 by 100 gives us:
% = 45
Therefore, 18 is 45% of 40.
Alternatively, we can use a proportion to solve the problem. We know that 18 is some unknown percentage of 40, so we can set up a proportion using the following formula:
part/whole = %/100
In this formula, we substitute the values we know. The "part" is 18, the "whole" is 40, and the "%" is what we want to find.
18/40 = %/100
To solve for "%" we can cross-multiply:
18 x 100 = 40 x %
1800 = 40%
Therefore, 18 is 45% of 40.
In conclusion, finding out what percent 18 is of 40 is a simple calculation that can be done using a formula or a proportion. Remember that percentages are just another way of expressing fractions, where the denominator is always 100. Knowing how to calculate percentages is a valuable skill that will come in handy in many real-life situations, such as calculating discounts, tax, and interest rates.