Question

After a long day of surfing, Winnie decides she needs a taco from the taco truck parked on the road. When she enters the beach from the water, she is 150 feet away if she runs straight to it. However, she knows she can run at 2 ft/sec in the sand and 5 ft/sec on the asphalt. If the distance from the water across the sand directly straight ahead, if she ran to the asphalt first, is 80 feet. How should Winnie run to the Taco Truck to minimize her time, and what is the minimum time?

A) Run straight to the taco truck on the sand.
B) Run straight to the taco truck on the asphalt.
C) Take a different route.
D) The minimum time cannot be determined.

Answer 1

To minimize her time, Winnie should run straight to the taco truck on the asphalt.

Step-by-step explanation:

To minimize her time, Winnie should run straight to the taco truck on the asphalt. This is because her speed on the asphalt is faster at 5 ft/sec compared to 2 ft/sec on the sand. Let's calculate the time it would take for each option:

Option A: Running straight to the taco truck on the sand

Time = Distance / Speed = 150 ft / 2 ft/sec = 75 sec

Option B: Running straight to the taco truck on the asphalt

Time = Distance / Speed = 80 ft / 5 ft/sec = 16 sec

Therefore, the minimum time is 16 seconds and Winnie should choose option B to run straight to the taco truck on the asphalt.