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Two spiders are climbing up a wall. the first one is at a height of 8 feet from the ground and climbs at a speed of 6 feet per minute. the second is at a height of 20 feet from the ground and climbs 3 feet every minute. after what time, in minutes, will the spiders be at the same height on the wall?

User Ewaver
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1 Answer

4 votes

Final answer:

The two spiders will be at the same height after 4 minutes. This is found by setting the equations for their climbing progress equal to each other and solving for time.

Step-by-step explanation:

We need to determine when two spiders climbing a wall will be at the same height. The first spider starts at 8 feet with a climbing speed of 6 feet per minute, and the second spider starts at 20 feet with a climbing speed of 3 feet per minute. Let's call the time after which they are at the same height 't' minutes.

Calculating the Position Over Time

For the first spider: Position after 't' minutes = 8 feet + (6 feet/minute * t)
For the second spider: Position after 't' minutes = 20 feet + (3 feet/minute * t)

Setting the Positions Equal to Each Other

8 + 6t = 20 + 3t
6t - 3t = 20 - 8
3t = 12
t = 4 minutes

Therefore, after 4 minutes, both spiders will be at the same height on the wall.

User SaoPauloooo
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