$\frac{1}{(2 \frac{1}{3})} + \frac{1}{(1 \frac{3}{4})}$ is equal to
Aptitude
Simplification
Difficulty: Easy
Choose an option
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A$\frac{7}{14}$
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B$\frac{12}{49}$
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C$4 \frac{1}{12}$
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DNone of these
Answer
Correct Answer: None of these
Explanation
### Concept & Strategy
The key insight is converting mixed fractions to improper fractions before taking their reciprocals. Remember that the reciprocal of a fraction is determined by flipping its numerator and denominator.
$$ \text{Reciprocal of } \frac{a}{b} = \frac{b}{a} $$
### Step-by-Step Solution
* Convert the mixed fractions in the denominators into improper fractions:
$2 \frac{1}{3} = \frac{2 \times 3 + 1}{3} = \frac{7}{3}$
$1 \frac{3}{4} = \frac{1 \times 4 + 3}{4} = \frac{7}{4}$
* Substitute these improper fractions back into the original expression:
$\frac{1}{\frac{7}{3}} + \frac{1}{\frac{7}{4}}$
* Take the reciprocal of each fraction to bring them to the numerator:
$\frac{3}{7} + \frac{4}{7}$
* Since the denominators are identically $7$, simply add the numerators together:
$\frac{3 + 4}{7} = \frac{7}{7} = 1$
* The calculated answer is $1$, which does not match options (a), (b), or (c).
### Exam Strategy & Shortcut
When dealing with expressions structured as "1 over a mixed fraction," immediately convert the mixed fraction to an improper fraction and flip it. Mental math: $2 \frac{1}{3}$ becomes $\frac{7}{3}$, flipped is $\frac{3}{7}$. $1 \frac{3}{4}$ becomes $\frac{7}{4}$, flipped is $\frac{4}{7}$. Adding them gives $\frac{7}{7} = 1$. The entire problem can be solved mentally without writing down a single equation.
### Common Pitfall
Students sometimes incorrectly evaluate the reciprocal of a mixed fraction by only flipping the fractional part (for example, assuming $\frac{1}{2 \frac{1}{3}}$ is $2 \frac{3}{1}$). Always convert the entire number to a pure improper fraction before applying the reciprocal.
### Final Answer
**Therefore, the correct answer is None of these.**