Final answer:
John can mow 7 lawns in 5 hours. To mow 42 lawns, we multiply 42 by the time it takes to mow one lawn (5/7 hours), yielding 30 hours. Thus, John needs 30 hours to mow 42 lawns.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks about the time it will take John to mow 42 lawns if he can mow 7 lawns in 5 hours. To solve this problem, first, we need to find the rate at which John mows lawns, then use this rate to calculate the time needed for 42 lawns.
Step 1: Find the rate. John mows 7 lawns in 5 hours, so his rate is 7 lawns per 5 hours. We can simplify this to 1 lawn per (5/7) hours.
Step 2: Calculate time for 42 lawns. If 1 lawn takes (5/7) hours, 42 lawns will take 42 * (5/7) hours, which equals 30 hours.
Therefore, the correct answer to how long it would take John to mow 42 lawns at his current rate is 30 hours (Option b).