Final answer:
To make 1 spring, 1.5 inches of steel wire are needed.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find out how many inches of steel wire are needed to make 1 spring, we can set up a proportion. We know that the worker uses 450 inches of steel wire to make 300 springs. Let x represent the number of inches of steel wire needed to make 1 spring. The proportion would be:
450 inches/300 springs = x inches/1 spring
To solve for x, we can cross multiply:
450 * 1 = 300 * x
450 = 300x
Dividing both sides by 300, we get:
x = 450/300 = 1.5 inches
Therefore, 1.5 inches of steel wire are needed to make 1 spring.