A room in a house measures 6m by 3m. The height of the room is 2m. Some ants have discovered a bowl of sugar on the floor in one corner of the room. The entrance to their colony is in the roof at the opposite corner. What is the least distance they will have to travel along the roof, floor and/or walls from the colony to the bowl of sugar?

To solve the problem, we need to determine the shortest path an ant would travel from the bowl of sugar on the floor to the colony entrance at the opposite corner on the roof, by traveling along the surfaces (walls, floor, roof) of the room.

### Room Dimensions:
- Length: 6 meters
- Width: 3 meters
- Height: 2 meters

### Problem Setup:
- The bowl of sugar is located at one corner on the floor, let’s say at (0, 0, 0).
- The ant colony entrance is at the diagonally opposite corner on the roof, at (6, 3, 2).

### Strategy:
The least distance is found by "unfolding" the room, imagining it as a flat surface. The ant can travel across the roof, floor, and walls, which can be represented as a straight line across this unfolded room.

### Unfolding the Room:
Consider the ant's path as moving from (0, 0, 0) to (6, 3, 2). We can "unfold" the room in different ways by flattening different pairs of surfaces. One such unfolding might involve flattening one of the side walls and the floor, so the ant’s path is a straight line in the unfolded 2D plane.

There are several unfolding possibilities, but we will find the minimum distance among them:

1. **Unfold along length and height:** Flatten the front wall (6m x 2m) onto the floor.
   - The straight-line distance is calculated by considering a rectangle of 8 meters by 3 meters (because 6m + 2m = 8m, width remains 3m).
   - The distance \( D_1 \) is given by:
     \[
     D_1 = \sqrt{(8m)^2 + (3m)^2} = \sqrt{64 + 9} = \sqrt{73} \text{ meters}
     \]

2. **Unfold along width and height:** Flatten the side wall (3m x 2m) onto the floor.
   - The straight-line distance is calculated by considering a rectangle of 7 meters by 6 meters (because 3m + 4m = 7m, length remains 6m).
   - The distance \( D_2 \) is given by:
     \[
     D_2 = \sqrt{(7m)^2 + (6m)^2} = \sqrt{49 + 36} = \sqrt{85} \text{ meters}
     \]

3. **Unfold along length and width:** This doesn't change much as it would still involve diagonal travel in 3D space.

Comparing these, the shortest distance \( \sqrt{73} \) meters is approximately 8.54 meters.

### Conclusion:
The least distance the ants would have to travel along the surfaces of the room is approximately **8.54 meters**.

Would you like more details on this solution, or do you have any other questions? 

---

Here are some related questions:

1. How would the shortest distance change if the height of the room was 3 meters instead of 2 meters?
2. What would be the least distance if the ants could fly through the air instead of walking along surfaces?
3. How can the concept of unfolding be applied to other shapes, such as a cube?
4. What is the mathematical basis for unfolding geometric shapes to solve distance problems?
5. How does the Pythagorean theorem apply in finding the shortest path on an unfolded room?
6. If the room had more than 6 surfaces (for example, if it had additional internal walls), how would the calculation change?
7. What if the ant colony entrance was not at a corner but at a random point on the ceiling?
8. How can this problem be modeled and solved using vector mathematics?

**Tip:** Always consider multiple geometric transformations (like unfolding) when solving shortest path problems in 3D spaces!

Explore how to calculate the shortest path for ants traveling from a sugar bowl on the floor to their colony entrance on the roof of a room with dimensions 6m by 3m by 2m. Learn about unfolding geometric shapes, applying the Pythagorean theorem, and using the distance formula in 3D space. Suitable for students in Grades 7-9.

Math Problem Statement

Solution

Ask a new question for Free

By Image

Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Formulas

Theorems

Suitable Grade Level

Related Recommendation