Difference between revisions of "2008 AIME II Problems/Problem 2"

(Problem)
(Added Simple Solution)
Line 1: Line 1:
 
== Problem ==
 
== Problem ==
 
<!-- don't remove the following tag, for PoTW on the Wiki front page--><onlyinclude>Rudolph bikes at a [[constant]] rate and stops for a five-minute break at the end of every mile. Jennifer bikes at a constant rate which is three-quarters the rate that Rudolph bikes, but Jennifer takes a five-minute break at the end of every two miles. Jennifer and Rudolph begin biking at the same time and arrive at the <math>50</math>-mile mark at exactly the same time. How many minutes has it taken them?<!-- don't remove the following tag, for PoTW on the Wiki front page--></onlyinclude>
 
<!-- don't remove the following tag, for PoTW on the Wiki front page--><onlyinclude>Rudolph bikes at a [[constant]] rate and stops for a five-minute break at the end of every mile. Jennifer bikes at a constant rate which is three-quarters the rate that Rudolph bikes, but Jennifer takes a five-minute break at the end of every two miles. Jennifer and Rudolph begin biking at the same time and arrive at the <math>50</math>-mile mark at exactly the same time. How many minutes has it taken them?<!-- don't remove the following tag, for PoTW on the Wiki front page--></onlyinclude>
 +
 +
== Simple Solution ==
 +
Let <math>r</math> be the time Rudolph takes disregarding breaks and <math>\frac{4}{3}r</math> be the time Jennifer takes disregarding breaks. We have the equation
 +
<cmath>r+5\left(49\right)=\frac{4}{3}r+5\left(24\right)</cmath>
 +
<cmath>123=\frac13r</cmath>
 +
<cmath>r=375.</cmath>
 +
Thus, the total time they take is <math>375 + 5(49) = \boxed{620}</math> minutes.
  
 
== Solution ==
 
== Solution ==

Revision as of 09:22, 18 July 2018

Problem

Rudolph bikes at a constant rate and stops for a five-minute break at the end of every mile. Jennifer bikes at a constant rate which is three-quarters the rate that Rudolph bikes, but Jennifer takes a five-minute break at the end of every two miles. Jennifer and Rudolph begin biking at the same time and arrive at the $50$-mile mark at exactly the same time. How many minutes has it taken them?

Simple Solution

Let $r$ be the time Rudolph takes disregarding breaks and $\frac{4}{3}r$ be the time Jennifer takes disregarding breaks. We have the equation \[r+5\left(49\right)=\frac{4}{3}r+5\left(24\right)\] \[123=\frac13r\] \[r=375.\] Thus, the total time they take is $375 + 5(49) = \boxed{620}$ minutes.

Solution

Let Rudolf bike at a rate $r$, so Jennifer bikes at the rate $\dfrac 34r$. Let the time both take be $t$.

Then Rudolf stops $49$ times (because the rest after he reaches the finish does not count), losing a total of $49 \cdot 5 = 245$ minutes, while Jennifer stops $24$ times, losing a total of $24 \cdot 5 = 120$ minutes. The time Rudolf and Jennifer actually take biking is then $t - 245,\, t-120$ respectively.

Using the formula $r = \frac dt$, since both Jennifer and Rudolf bike $50$ miles,

\begin{align}r &= \frac{50}{t-245}\\ \frac{3}{4}r &= \frac{50}{t-120} \end{align}

Substituting equation $(1)$ into equation $(2)$ and simplifying, we find

\begin{align*}50 \cdot \frac{3}{4(t-245)} &= 50 \cdot \frac{1}{t-120}\\ \frac{1}{3}t &= \frac{245 \cdot 4}{3} - 120\\ t &= \boxed{620}\ \text{minutes} \end{align*}

See also

2008 AIME II (ProblemsAnswer KeyResources)
Preceded by
Problem 1
Followed by
Problem 3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
All AIME Problems and Solutions

The problems on this page are copyrighted by the Mathematical Association of America's American Mathematics Competitions. AMC logo.png