Last summer, I saw this confusing Sales sign in Macy's: 75% off original prices when you take an extra 50% off already reduced prices What was the percent of the first reduction?

Solution to the Problem: The item was already reduced by 50%. If you took 50% off the original price, and then you took 50% of what was left (50%), you would have reductions of 50% and 25% off the original for 75%. Using algebra, let x = original price let R * x = reduced price The final price is .25 x Hence, .5 R x = .25 x so, R = .5 or 50%, and the amount of discount is 100 - 50 = 50%.

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