1969 AHSME Problems/Problem 26

Problem

$[asy] draw(arc((0,-1),2,30,150),dashed+linewidth(.75)); draw((-1.7,0)--(0,0)--(1.7,0),dot); draw((0,0)--(0,.98),dot); MP("A",(-1.7,0),W);MP("B",(1.7,0),E);MP("M",(0,0),S);MP("C",(0,1),N); [/asy]$

A parabolic arch has a height of $16$ inches and a span of $40$ inches. The height, in inches, of the arch at the point $5$ inches from the center $M$ is:

$\text{(A) } 1\quad \text{(B) } 15\quad \text{(C) } 15\tfrac{1}{3}\quad \text{(D) } 15\tfrac{1}{2}\quad \text{(E) } 15\tfrac{3}{4}$

Solution

Because the arch has a height of $16$ inches, an equation that models the arch is $y = ax^2 + 16$ , where $x$ is the horizontal distance from the center and $y$ is the height. The arch has a span of $40$ inches, so the arch meets the ground $20$ inches from the center. That means $0 = 400a + 16$ , so $a = -\frac{1}{25}$ .

Thus, the equation that models height based on distance from the center $y = -\frac{1}{25}x^2 + 16$ , so the height of the arch $5$ inches from the center is $-\frac{1}{25} \cdot 5^2 + 16 = \boxed{\textbf{(B) } 15}$ inches.

1969 AHSC (Problems • Answer Key • Resources)
Preceded by Problem 25	Followed by Problem 27
1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31 • 32 • 33 • 34 • 35
All AHSME Problems and Solutions

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

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1969 AHSME Problems/Problem 26

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