MAT 104 Quantitative Reasoning

Module 3 Review

Please answer all of the questions below and show your work.

1. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is a government agency that collects information
about jobs in the U.S. In 2014, the Bureau reported that police officers had a median
yearly salary of $52,936. Calculate the average hourly wage for police officers?
(Assume that police officers generally work 40 hours a week, and there are 52 weeks in
the year).

52936 dollars 1 year 1 week dollars

Answer: × × =25.45
year 52 weeks 40 hours hour

2. Assume regular unleaded fuel costs $3.75 per gallon. A Volkswagen Jetta uses unleaded
fuel. It gets about 30 miles per gallon. Imagine that a driver of the Jetta drives 15,000
miles each year. How much money will the driver of the Jetta spend on gas in one year?

15000 miles
=500 gallons
Answer: 30 miles . (500 gallons) (3.75 $ / gallon) = $1875
gallon

3. If a car is travelling at a speed of 70 kilometers per hour, how many meters will the car
travel in 10 seconds?

70 km 1 hour 1 min 1000 m

Answer: × × × ≈ 19.4 m/sec
hour 60 min 60 sec 1 km

(19.4 meters / sec) (10 sec) = 194 meters

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4. On average, Americans consume 13.9 pounds of ice cream per person over an entire
year. Ben loves ice cream, but limits himself to one 2-ounce (oz) serving each week.
Find the difference between the amount of ice cream that Ben consumes compared to
the national average. (Note: 1-pound equals to 16 ounces and there are 52 weeks in a
year)

Answer: Ben’s annual consumption:

2 oz 52 weeks 1 pound pounds

× × =6.5
week year 16 oz year

13.9 – 6.5 = 7.4. Ben’s annual consumption is 7.4 pounds per year below the national
average.

5. Imagine you want to put new tiles on a floor. The tiles that you plan to use have a
square shape with dimensions 90 cm by 90 cm. The floor is rectangular in shape with
dimensions 7 meters by 5 meters. Estimate the number of tiles that are required to fit
the floor?

Answer: The area of the floor is (7 m)(5 m) = 35 m2. 1 m2 equals 10,000 cm2. So, 35 m2
equals 35,000 cm2. The area of each tile is (90 cm)(90 cm) = 8100 cm2. 35,000 / 8100
≈ 43.2. We will need about 44 tiles to cover the floor.

6. You are landscaping your backyard and want to fertilize the lawn. Home Depot sells
Super-Green lawn fertilizer in bags, and each bag costs $16.78 (tax included). Each 15-
lb bag is estimated to cover about 3,500 square feet. Your lawn is 1/4 of an acre.
How much will it cost to fertilize your lawn? Assume you cannot purchase partial bags.
You have to purchase whole bags. Note: 1 acre is 43,560 square feet.

Answer: ¼ of an acre = ¼ (43,560 square feet) = 10,890 square feet.

10,890 / 3500 ≈ 3.1 bags. We will need to purchase 4 bags.
4(16.78) = $67.12

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7. People burn calories even when they are resting. Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the
number of calories expended by a person at rest for one day. One estimate of a person’s
BMR is given by this equation:

BMR = 4.536w + 15.875h – 5a + g

where w is weight in pounds, h is height in inches, and a is age in years. This equation is
called Mifflin’s equation. The variable g is a gender adjustment: g is 5 for males and g is
-161 for females.
(a) Gina weighs 130 pounds, is 62 inches tall, and is 30 years old. Estimate her BMR
using this formula. Round to the nearest whole number.

Answer: BMR = 4.536(130) + 15.875(62) – 5(30) + (-161) = 1263

(b) Joseph weighs 195 pounds, is 73 inches tall, and is 37 years old. Calculate his BMR
using this formula. Round to the nearest whole number.

Answer: BMR = 4.536(195) + 15.875(73) – 5(37) + (5) = 1863

(c) Johnathon’s BMR on a given day was 1720. If he weighs 180 pounds and is 72
inches tall, use the equation to estimate his age. Round to the nearest whole
number.

Answer: Solve: 1720 = 4.536(180) + 15.875(72) – 5(a) + (5)

1720 = 1964.5 – 5a
5a = 244.5
a ≈ 49 years old

8. When a person is driving and pushes the brake, a car does not immediately stop. The
car travels a distance before it stops completely. This distance is called braking
distance. The formula for the braking distance of a car is:
2
V
d=
2 g(f +G)
where:
 d is the braking distance (in feet),
 V is the initial velocity of the car (in feet per second),
 G is the roadway grade (written in decimal form),
 f is the coefficient of friction between the tires and the roadway (0 < f < 1), and
 g is the acceleration constant due to gravity. (g = 32.2 ft/sec2).

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 Complete the table below if G = 0.1 and f = 0.8. First convert the speeds from miles per
hour to feet per second. Round the braking distance to the nearest tenth.

Initial Velocity Velocity Braking Distance

(miles/hour) (feet/second) (feet)

30 44 33.4

60 88 133.6

90 132 300.6

9. If the initial velocity doubles, but f and G remain the same, how does the braking
distance change?

Answer: The braking distance of the car with velocity 60 miles per hour is four times
the braking distance when the velocity is 30 miles per hour.

10. Find the braking distance if G = 0.06, f = 0.8, and the speed upon braking is 70 miles per
hour.

70 mi 1 hr 5280 ft feet
Answer: × × ≈ 102.7
hr 3600 sec 1 mi sec

V2 (102.7)2
d= = ≈190.4 feet
2 g(f +G) 2(32.2)(0.8+0.06)

11. Widmark’s formula for estimating a person’s blood alcohol content (BAC) is provided
below:

B=−0.015t + ( 2.84
W ∙r )
N

This formula estimates a person’s BAC as a percentage (B) based on the person’s
weight in pounds (W), the number of standard drinks that the person consumed (N),
the distribution rate of alcohol through the person’s body (r), and the number of hours
since the person had their first drink (t).

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 (a) Kia weighs 150 pounds and consumed 2 standard drinks. Simplify the Widmark’s
equation as much as possible for this case to develop an equation only involving the
variables B and t, such that B is solved for. (Note that r = 0.55 for women.)

Answer: B=−0.015t +0.069

(b) Find Kia’s BAC immediately after she consumed her first drink.

Answer: B=0.069

(c) Find Kia’s BAC 3 hours after she consumed her first drink.

Answer: B=0.024

(d) What is the relative change in Kia’s BAC over the first three hours after she
consumer her first drink?

Answer: (0.024 – 0.069) / 0.069 ≈ -0.65 = -65%

12. A sports center offers party packages. They advertise a flat rate of $325 for the first 10
guests. They charge $15 per person for each additional guest. A formula for the cost C
of the party is:
C = 325 + 15p
where p is the number of guests more than 10. (For example, if 12 people come to
party, then p = 2.)
Suppose you want to have a huge birthday celebration this year. However, you have
budgeted $500 for your party. How many guests can you invite if you decide to have
your party at this sports center?

Answer: Solve: 500 = 325 + 15p. p ≈ 11.7. We can invite 10 + 11 = 21 guests.

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13. Many popular diets are low in fat. The percentage of fat (P) in a food can be calculated
using the following equation:

where f is the grams of fat and c is the total calories in a food. Solve this formula for c.

9f
Answer: c=
P

14. Solve the following equation for n:

67 = 3(n – 1) + 2n

Answer: n=¿ 14

15. Solve the following equation for n:

3n + 7(n – 2) = 36

Answer: n=¿ 5