Final answer:
To calculate the amount of gas needed, first determine the van's fuel efficiency (20 miles per gallon) and then divide the distance to travel by this efficiency (380 miles / 20 mpg), resulting in 19 gallons needed to cover 380 miles.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question deals with the calculation of the fuel efficiency of a van and the amount of fuel required to cover a certain distance. To solve this, we need to first find out the van's miles per gallon (mpg) by dividing the miles traveled by the gallons of gas used.
In the stated problem, the van travels 280 miles on 14 gallons of gas. So the van's fuel efficiency is 20 miles per gallon (280 miles / 14 gallons = 20 mpg).
Next, to determine how many gallons the van needs to travel 380 miles, we divide the total distance by the van's fuel efficiency: 380 miles / 20 mpg = 19 gallons. Therefore, the van will need 19 gallons of gas to travel 380 miles.