Final answer:
The constant of variation k, when Z varies jointly as Y and W and inversely as the square of X, is found to be 12.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question is asking to find the constant of variation when Z varies jointly as Y and W and inversely as the square of X. We know that Z = 360 when Y = 24, W = 20, and X = 4. To solve this, we can use the formula for joint and inverse variation which is Z = k * (Y * W) / X2, where k is the constant of variation we need to find.
Plugging in the known values, we get:
- 360 = k * (24 * 20) / 42
- 360 = k * 480 / 16
- k = 360 * 16 / 480
- k = 12
The constant of variation k is 12.