When looking for 4/8's of something it is much easier if you first simplify the fraction, so for 4/8 you would start by dividing both the denominator and the numerator by 4, 4/4= 1. 8/4= 2. Now you have changed the fraction to its simplest form, 1/2. So if 1/2 of something 144, you simply times 144 by 2 to get 288.