Posted by M.A. on Tuesday, September 28, 2010 at 8:16am.
There are two ways to do this, as a logic problem or as an algebra problem
If it will take William 5 hours and Andy 4 hours, or William 10 hours and Andy 2 hours to finish their work, then each decrease in time by Andy of 2 hours results in 5 more hours of work by William. So if Andy's work goes to zero then there will be 5 more hours of work required by William, so
10h + 5 h = 15 h.
By algebra if we say that the rate of work by William is x and that by Andy is y then
5x+4y=T Total task .....1
10x+2y=T
or
20x+4y=2T ..............2
subtract 1 from 2
15x=T, so it takes William 15 h
Thank you Dr. Russ. I am so thrilled with your answer. It is the first time I have had an answer that I can truly understand and comprehend, being a math-challenged individual. Thank you sooo much for your careful and complete explanation!
Related Questions
Math - Andy and William work together to build a toy house. It will take William...
Answer Check Please - Andy and William work together to build a toy house. It ...
math - I have trouble solving word problems. Can you tell me the best approach ...
math - I have trouble solving word problems. Can you help me solve this problem...
math - If Sally can paint a house in 4 hours, and John can paint the same house ...
algebra - It takes 7 hours for Will to paint a house. Judy can paint the same ...
Math - If it takes painter # 1 three hours to paint a house, and painter # 2 ...
Math - If Sally can paint a house in 4 hours, & John can paint the same ...
Algebra - Word Problem: Jack mows the lawn in 4 hours, mary mows the lawn in 5 ...
math - Amy paints a house in 4 hours and Thomas paints the same house in 6 hours...
For Further Reading
