Final answer:
The unit rate of an object falling at 144 ft per 12 seconds is 12 feet per second, corresponding to option A.
Step-by-step explanation:
To change the rate of falling at 144 ft per 12 seconds into a unit rate, you divide the number of feet by the number of seconds to find the rate of feet per second. This can be calculated as follows:
144 ft รท 12 s = 12 ft/s
Therefore, the unit rate of the object falling is 12 feet per second, which corresponds to option A. Unit rates are helpful to easily compare different situations that involve rates.