Question

Malcolm earns $20 per hour mowing lawns and $10 per hour walking dogs. He needs to earn at least $200 per week but can work a maximum of 20 hours. Malcolm spends at least 5 hours walking his neighbor's dogs. How many hours should he mow lawns to meet his goal?

Answer 1

Malcolm should mow lawns for a minimum of 8 hours to meet his goal of earning at least $200 per week.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine how many hours Malcolm should mow lawns to meet his goal, we need to set up an equation. Let's say he mows x hours. His earnings from mowing lawns would be $20*x. Since he spends at least 5 hours walking dogs, he has a maximum of 20-5=15 hours available for mowing lawns. So, the inequality that represents his earnings should be $20*x + $10*5 ≥ $200. Solving this inequality, we get:

$20*x + $50 ≥ $200

$20*x ≥ $150

x ≥ $150/$20

x ≥ 7.5

Malcolm cannot work a fraction of an hour, so he should mow lawns for a minimum of 8 hours to meet his goal of earning at least $200 per week.