Question

Hans is at the observatory of the Empire State Building in New York City. The observatory is on the 86th floor of the building. Hans will take the elevator down from the 86th floor to the first floor, a distance of 320 meters. If the ride takes 50 seconds to descend, what is the rate of descent in meters per second?

Answer 1

6.4 meters per second

Explanation:

Rate of Change

If two variables x and t are to be related as the rate x changes when t changes, it can be expressed as:

`\displaystyle v=(x)/(t)`

Hans takes a ride in the elevator down from the 86th floor to the first floor, a distance of x=320 meters in t=50 seconds. The rate of descent is

`\displaystyle v=(320)/(50)`

`v=6.4\ m/s`