Question

The amount of time it takes Joel to check e-mail is directly proportional to the number of messages he has. If it takes him t minutes when there are n new e-mail messages, then how long does it take him (in terms of t and n) if there are 50 new messages?

Answer 1

Answer: t = k * 50

Explanation:

Answer 2

`\sf t = 50k`

Explanation:

If the time it takes Joel to check email is directly proportional to the number of messages he has, we can express this relationship with a proportionality constant k:

`\sf t = k \cdot n`

where:

• t is the time in minutes
• n is the number of new e-mail messages, and
• k is the proportionality constant.

Now, to find out how long it takes Joel when there are 50 new messages, we can use the same proportionality equation and substitute n = 50 :

`\sf t = k \cdot 50`

`\sf t = 50k`

So, it takes 50k minutes where k is the proportionality constant.