Math Problem Statement

What distance does the car travel during this part of the journey?

Solution

The graph represents the speed-time relationship of a car's journey, with speed on the vertical axis (in meters per second, m/s) and time on the horizontal axis (in seconds, s). The task is to find the distance traveled by the car during this part of the journey.

The key to solving this is to calculate the area under the speed-time graph, as this area represents the total distance traveled. The graph is a triangle, so we use the formula for the area of a triangle:

Area=12×base×height\text{Area} = \frac{1}{2} \times \text{base} \times \text{height}

  • Base: The time from 0 to 40 seconds.
  • Height: The maximum speed, 30 m/s.

Substituting these values:

Area=12×40s×30m/s=600meters\text{Area} = \frac{1}{2} \times 40 \, \text{s} \times 30 \, \text{m/s} = 600 \, \text{meters}

Therefore, the distance traveled by the car is 600 meters, which corresponds to option C.

Would you like more details or have any questions? Here are five related questions:

  1. How would the distance change if the speed-time graph included a curve instead of straight lines?
  2. What is the significance of the area under the curve in different types of motion graphs?
  3. How can we calculate the average speed from this graph?
  4. What would happen if the car continued at a constant speed after 40 seconds?
  5. How does this graph relate to real-world driving scenarios?

Tip: Always remember, in a speed-time graph, the total distance traveled is found by calculating the area under the curve.

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Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Speed-Time Graph
Distance Calculation
Kinematics

Formulas

Area of a triangle = 1/2 × base × height

Theorems

Area under speed-time graph gives distance traveled

Suitable Grade Level

Grades 9-10