Andy carried 1/2 gallon of water on a hike. He drank 2/3 of the water. How much water did he drink?

So,

All we have to do is multiply the amount of water Andy carried by the fractional amount he drank.

1/2 * 2/3

This is pretty simple. To halve TWO-thirds, just halve the numerator, since it's such a nice number.

Presto. Half of two is one.

Therefore,

1/2 * 2/3 = 1/3

Andy drank 1/3 gallons of water on his hike. That's 5 1/3 cups of water. I would estimate his hike to be about 3 miles. Easy peasy.

The answer is 1/2 * 2/3 = 1/3