Precalculus: Mathematics for Calculus, 7th Edition

Published by Brooks Cole
ISBN 10: 1305071751
ISBN 13: 978-1-30507-175-9

Prologue - Principles of Problem Solving - Look Back - Problems - Page P4: 1

Answer

It is not possible to achieve an average speed of 30 mi/h for the trip.

Work Step by Step

Assume the speed for the descent is $v$, the time the car take for the first mile is $t1=1/15$ and the time for the second mile is $t2=1/v$. The average speed can be calculate as $2/(t1+t2)=30$ which gives $\frac{1}{15}+\frac{1}{v}=\frac{2}{30}$ and by solving this equation we obtain $\frac{1}{v}=0$ which means that it is not possible to achieve an average speed of 30 mi/h for the trip.
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