Question

In basketball, hang time is the time that both of your feet are off the ground during a jump. The equation for hang time is
`t = 2((2h)/(32) )\frac{1}2` , where t is the time in seconds, and h is the height of the jump, in feet.

Player 1 had a hang time of 0.9 s. Player 2 had a hang time of 0.8 s. To the nearest inch, how much higher did Player 1 jump than Player 2?

Answer 1

8 inches

Explanation:

Given:

t = 2 ( 2h/32 ) ^1/2 ( or: t = 2 * sqrt ( 2h/32) ).

Step 1: First Player

0.9 = 2 * sqrt( 2h/32 ) / ^2 ( we will square both sides of equation )

0.81 = 4* 2h/32

0.81 = h/4

h 1 = 0.81 * 4 = 3.24 ft

Step 2: Second Player

0.8 = 2 * sqrt( 2h/32 ) /^2

0.64 = 4 * 2 h/32

h 2 = 0.64 * 4 = 2.56 ft

Step 3: Simplify

h 2 - h 1 = 3.24 - 2.56 = 0.68 ft

and since 12 in = 1 ft:

0.68 * 12 = 8.16 in ≈ 8 in.