Question

A runner finishes a 500 m race in 1.5 minutes (1min= 60s). What is her average speed in m/s? Show all work.

Answer 1

5.56 m/s

Step-by-step explanation:

The problem involves calculating the average speed of a runner over a distance of 500 meters, with the time taken to complete the race provided as 1.5 minutes. To find the average speed, we will use the formula:

`\text{Average Speed (m/s)} = \frac{\text{Total Distance (m)}}{\text{Total Time (s)}}`
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1. Convert Time to Seconds:
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The runner's time of 1.5 minutes needs to be converted into seconds for consistency with the metric units (since distance is in meters). There are 60 seconds in a minute, so:

`\Longrightarrow 1.5 \text{ min} * \frac{60\text{ s}}{1\text{ min}} \\\\\\\\\therefore 1.5 \text{ min} = 90 \text{ s}`

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2. Calculate Average Speed:
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With the time in seconds and the distance in meters, we can now find the average speed by plugging these values into the speed formula:

`\Longrightarrow \text{Average Speed} = \frac{500 \text{ m}}{90 \text{ s}} \\\\\\\\\Longrightarrow \text{Average Speed} = \frac{50 \text{ m}}{9 \text{ s}} \\\\\\\\\therefore \boxed{\text{Average Speed} \approx 5.56 \text{ m/s}}`

The runner’s average speed is approximately 5.56 m/s.