Question

On a public transportation map, two stations are 12 centimeters apart. If the scale of the map is 2 centimeters = 7 kilometers, then what is the actual distance between the two stations?

Answer 1

If 2 centimeters on the map represent 7 kilometers in reality, then 1 centimeter on the map represents 3.5 kilometers in reality. Therefore, the actual distance between the two stations is 12 cm * 3.5 km/cm = 42 kilometers.

Answer 2

If two stations on a public transportation map are 12 centimeters apart and the scale of the map is 2 centimeters = 7 kilometers, then we can use the scale factor to find the actual distance between the two stations. The scale factor is the ratio of the actual distance to the distance on the map. We can set up a proportion to solve for the actual distance:

2 cm / 7 km = 12 cm / x

where x is the actual distance between the two stations. Cross-multiplying and solving for x, we get:

x = (12 cm * 7 km) / 2 cm = 42 km

Therefore, the actual distance between the two stations is 42 kilometers.