Question of the Day #3 - Mustang George

[sxty8goats]

On a recent business trip to Cleveland George was fired and left to hang, no ticket home, no company car, no credit cards. In a blind panic to get home, he purchased a Mustang for $120 from a high school kid selling pot in the school yard. The Mustang travels 17 times faster than George can walk. Half way home the Mustang blew a rod, spewing oil across the road and stranding George yet again.

In an unbelievable stroke of luck, a farmer was hauling a 5.0 ford crate motor with a mule. George traded the Mustang for the mule and continued on towards home riding the mule. If George can walk twice as fast as the mule, would George have arrived home sooner if he just walked home from Cleveland in the first place?

PM Answers Please.

Question Closed 9:05AM EST 9/29/09

Answer: Yes it would have been quicker if he just walked from Cleveland. He was half way home when he traded the mustang from the mule. He walks twice as fast as the mule. So riding the mule from the halfway point home takes just as long as walking the entire way home. All the time he spent in the Mustang is added to the time he spent on the ass.

That will teach him to drive a Mustang.

[VeritasGT]

PM'd

[1luckeyt/a]

pmd.

[tommyb]

PM'd

[radkon]

pmd

[sxty8goats]

Hmmm.. 7 PMs and only 2 correct so far....

[VeritasGT]

Missing information makes for a bad riddle.

[sxty8goats]

Missing information makes for a bad riddle.

All the info you need is in there. :)

[bvbull200]

All the info you need is in there. :)

I "think" I got it right, have checked and rechecked my theories a few times.

[Mr Bravada]

pm sent

[USCGTO]

PM'd ya

[asaberan]

PM'd

[blkbltgoat]

mmm I wanna try PM sent

[Boostcreep]

win?

[BRAZEN06GTO]

PM sent.

[Laguna]

You have a 50% chance of being right, so, lol.

[purepremiumpulp]

you are supposed to provide the mathematical proof though...


show your work...

[sxty8goats]

REBinc sums up the answer best:

It would have been quicker for him to walk the entire way home, walking at half the pace for the 2nd half alone equals a full trip walking.

Points winner's
10 _ alostshakerofsalt
5 _ Ninjured
3 _ bvbull200
1 _ 05ls7gto
1 _ asaberan
1 _ Boostcreep
1 _ Mr Bravada
1 _ radkon
1 _ REBinc
1 _ RXZKNZ
1 _ USCGTO
1 _ purepremiumpulp

And someone else, who will go unmentioned pointed out the simple truth:
it would have been just as fast to walk all the way home, as it was to ride a mule halfway home.:D Sometimes I wish you guys couldn't delete/edit your posts.

[sxty8goats]

you are supposed to provide the mathematical proof though...


show your work...
T1 = Walking Entire
T2 = Mule + Car
D= Distance
X= Walking speed


T1 = D/X

T2 = (D/2)/17X + (D/2)/(X/2)

reduce and you get T2= D/8.5X + D/X

T2>T1

[VeritasGT]

And someone else, who will go unmentioned pointed out the simple truth:
:D Sometimes I wish you guys couldn't delete/edit your posts.

LOL - took me a minute to wrap my head around it. I got excited over being the first PM.

[sxty8goats]

LOL - took me a minute to wrap my head around it. I got excited over being the first PM.

I just wish I could have seen your face after you typed out "By your logic....." and then re-read what you wrote. :)

[VeritasGT]

I just wish I could have seen your face after you typed out "By your logic....." and then re-read what you wrote. :)

"but wait!"


*thinks"


"i'm a retard"

[purepremiumpulp]

T1 = Walking Entire
T2 = Mule + Car
D= Distance
X= Walking speed


T1 = D/X

T2 = (D/2)/17X + (D/2)/(X/2)

reduce and you get T2= D/8.5X + D/X

T2>T1

This can be simplified well beyond using any variables at all though.

The time it takes to walk the full distance = 1y
the time it takes to drive 1/2 the distance at 1/17th the time = (1/34)y
The time it takes to ride a mule 1/2 the distance at 2 times the time = 1y

(mustang + mule) > walking
(35/34) > 1 True.

It will always be ~2.94% slower by driving + mule than walking.

[sxty8goats]

This can be simplified well beyond using any variables at all though.

The time it takes to walk the full distance = 1y
the time it takes to drive 1/2 the distance at 1/17th the time = (1/34)y
The time it takes to ride a mule 1/2 the distance at 2 times the time = 1y

(mustang + mule) > walking
(35/34) > 1 True.

It will always be ~2.94% slower by driving + mule than walking.

Y isn't a variable? My algebra teacher lied...

My Math is set up to be clear and easy to follow. You started in the middle of the equation, after the original equation was simplified.

[purepremiumpulp]

y was common to all parts of the equation so it can be divided away. you only need the coefficients.

the equation will eventually simplify to: 35/34 > 1



I do believe you have an error in your logic as well.

(d/2)/17x + (d/2)/(x/2) > d/x does not simplify to T2= D/8.5X + D/X as you stated.
it simplifies to D/34X + D/X > D/X... which further simplifies to 35/34 > 1 lol


lol, I can't believe I'm replying to this again though,... got some real work to do...