Question

Desiree drove north for 30 minutes at 50 miles per hour. Than she drove south for 60 minutes at 20 miles per hour. How far and in what direction is Desiree from where she started?

Answer 1

5 miles towards north

Explanation:

Given that:

Desiree drove towards north.

Time for which Desiree drove north = 30 minutes

Speed while driving north = 50 miles per hour.

Then Desiree drove towards south.

Time for which Desiree drove south = 60 minutes

Speed while driving south = 20 miles per hour.

To find:

The distance and the direction in which Desiree is now from where she has started?

Solution:

Formula for distance traveled can be given as:

`Distance = Speed * Time`

Let us convert the given time in hours first.

While traveling north, time = 30 minutes =
`\frac{1}2` hours

Distance traveled towards north = 50
`*`
`\frac{1}2` = 25 miles

Then she started traveling south i.e. in the direction just opposite to earlier direction.

While traveling south, time = 60 minutes = 1 hour

Distance traveled towards south = 20
`*` 1 = 20 miles

So, the distance at which she is from the starting point = 25 miles towards north - 20 miles towards south = 5 miles towards north