Final answer:
After 2 minutes, the two boats traveling towards each other on a 200 ft wide lake will be 60 ft apart.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question involves calculating the distance between two boats as they travel towards each other on a lake. Initially, the lake is 200 ft wide. Each minute, one boat covers 40 ft, and the other covers 30 ft. To find how far apart the boats will be after 2 minutes, we need to calculate the total distance each boat travels in 2 minutes and subtract this from the initial width of the lake.
- Boat 1 travels 40 ft/min, so in 2 minutes, it will travel 40 ft/min × 2 min = 80 ft.
- Boat 2 travels 30 ft/min, so in 2 minutes, it will travel 30 ft/min × 2 min = 60 ft.
- The boats cover a combined distance of 80 ft + 60 ft = 140 ft in 2 minutes.
- The remaining distance between the boats after 2 minutes is 200 ft - 140 ft = 60 ft.
Therefore, after 2 minutes the boats will be 60 ft apart.