2.

0.02
0.12
0.2
2
1.2

PERCENTS AND CONVERSION

Percents are just like fractions and decimals; they are just another way to express non-

integer numbers. The word percent means “for each 100.” So 50% translates to “50 for

each 100” or the fraction , which reduces to . You can also turn percents into

decimals by moving the decimal point two places to the left. So 50% would become

0.5. After converting the percent, make the calculation using the methods you just

learned for fractions and percents.

You’ve learned how to convert percents into fractions and decimals. You should also
know how to convert the other way—fractions and decimals into percents. Last but
not least, you should understand how to turn fractions into decimals and vice versa.

To convert decimals into percents, simply move the decimal point two places to the
right. So 0.4 becomes 40% and 0.654 becomes 65.4%.

To convert fractions into percents, multiply the numerator and denominator of the

fraction by the same number. Decide what multiplier is necessary to turn the
denominator into 100. Then use that multiplier for both the numerator and

denominator. For example, suppose you want to convert into a percent. You must

first multiply the 4 by 25 to get 100, so that’s the multiplier for both the numerator

and the denominator. So you get = = , which you know is the same as

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 75%. If you can’t easily find the multiplier for the fraction (if you have a fraction such

as ), just convert the fraction to a decimal (as described below) and then change the

decimal to a percent by moving the decimal point two places to the right.

Converting fractions to decimals is relatively straightforward: Just divide the

numerator by the denominator. So becomes 0.125.

To convert a decimal to a fraction, first determine the place of the rightmost digit of

the fraction. For example, in 0.125, the 5 is in the thousandths place. Therefore, the

denominator should be 1,000. The numerator of the fraction is just the number

without the decimal point. So 0.125 is the same as . Of course, you should

reduce the fraction if you can, so the result is .

The following chart shows the conversions for the most common fractions, decimals,
and percents. You should know these by heart so that you won’t spend precious time
calculating the converted values.

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 Translation
In fraction and percent problems, especially word problems, you can get confused
about which numbers to multiply, divide, add, or subtract. Translating the words into
an equation is often helpful in starting a problem. Take the “stem” of the question (the
part that contains the question word such as “what”) and translate each word using
this chart.

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 So the question “What percent of 50 is 10?” becomes ×50=10. Then you would

solve for n to get the answer, which is 20%.

You can often use translation to help you solve long word problems. Translate the
question stem, usually the last sentence, to set up the equation. Replace the items
described with numbers from the problem.

1. Paul owns 10 television sets, of which 2 do not work. Of the working

television sets, 2 have black-and-white screens and the rest have color
screens. What percent of Paul’s working television sets have color
screens?
20%
25%
40%
60%
75%

When you translate the question stem, you should get something like

×working=color. From the problem, you know that there are 10 − 2 = 8 working

television sets and 8 − 2 = 6 with color screens. Plugging these numbers into the

equation, you get ×8=6. Solving the equation, you get n = 75, so (E) is the

correct answer.

Translation is not always the fastest way to solve a problem. For example, you could
answer the question about Paul’s television sets by dividing the color televisions by

the number of working televisions: = = 75% (Remember your common fraction-

to-percent conversions). However, translating is a reliable way to set up a problem

when you don’t immediately see the solution.

Translation can also be useful for data sufficiency word problems. Although you don’t
need to calculate a numerical answer, setting up the equation can help you determine
whether you have enough pieces of information to answer the question. Just set up the

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 equation, but don’t solve it.

2. Brady, Charlie, and Daryl play on the same baseball team. The number of
home runs hit by Brady in a particular season is what fraction of the total
home runs hit by the three players in that season?
(1) Brady hit 12 home runs in that season.
(2) In that season, the number of home runs hit by Brady was twice
the number hit by Charlie and Daryl combined.

When you translate the question stem, you get b = n × (b + c + d) or n = .

Consider Statement (1). If you plug in b = 12, you get n = . You can’t solve

that equation for n, so narrow your choices to (B), (C), and (E). Now consider

Statement (2). You can translate that statement into b = 2(c + d). If you insert that

into your equation from the question stem, you get n = or n =

. You can solve that by canceling the (c + d) in both the top and bottom of

the fraction. (You get n = .) So Statement (2) is sufficient and the correct answer is

(B).

Percent Change
You will probably see at least one problem in which the value of some number
increases or decreases, and you need to find the percent change. A question might also
compare two numbers and ask you to state the difference in percentage terms. For
both of these cases, use this formula:

Finding the actual difference is usually pretty simple; just subtract the two numbers.
The key is determining which number is the original number. Sometimes the test
writers will try to trick you. Just remember the following guidelines:

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 If the question mentions “increase” or “greater,” you’re going from a smaller
number to a larger number. So the original number is the smaller one.
If the question says “decrease” or “less,” you’re going from a larger number to a
smaller number. So the original number is the larger one.

DRILL 3
Answers can be found on this page.

1. In a group of 20 tourists, 12 brought cameras. If one half of the tourists

with cameras brought disposable cameras, what percent of all the tourists
brought disposable cameras?
12%
20%
30%
40%
60%

2. Lenny can bench press 320 pounds. Ollie can bench press 400 pounds.
The weight Ollie can bench press is what percent greater than the weight
Lenny can bench press?
20%
25%
32%
40%
80%

3. The original price of a model X200 laptop computer is reduced by $1,000

to the new price of $2,000. What is the percentage change in the price of
the X200 laptop computer?

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 12 %

20%
33 %

40%
50%

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