## 194. Math Puzzle $7 / 81$

From a textbook by Adam Ries, who lived from 1492 to 1559, this problem was taken:

A son asks his father how old he is. The father answers: "If you were as old as I am, and half as old, and a quarter as old, and one year more, you would be 134 years old."

How old is the father?
When the father is $x$ years old, the total age of 134 years can be expressed by the following equation:

$$
\begin{aligned}
x+\frac{x}{2}+\frac{x}{4}+1=\frac{4 x+2 x+1 x+4}{4} & =134 \\
7 x+4 & =536 \\
7 x & =532 \\
x & =76
\end{aligned}
$$

Thus, the father is 76 years old at the time of his statement.