Two trucks, 300 km apart, are on a head-on collision course with one another. The first truck is moving
at 100 m/s and the other is moving at 50 m/s in the opposite direction. A confused (but swift) fly starts
from the front bumper of the faster truck and flies at 200 m/s toward the slower truck. The moment it
gets to the bumper of the slower truck, it instantly reverses its direction, flies to the fast truck’s bumper
and instantly turns around again. This repeats again and again until the trucks finally collide. If the fly’s
speed is 200 m/s, what is the total distance the fly will travel?
Goodness.
distancefly=velocityfly*timeto collision
the time to collision is 300km/150m/s=you do it.
A much better question: which way does the fly face at the end?
To find the total distance the fly will travel, we need to consider the time it takes for the trucks to collide.
Let's first determine the time it takes for the trucks to collide. We know that the trucks are 300 km apart and moving towards each other. The relative velocity between the trucks is the sum of their individual velocities. So, the relative velocity is 100 m/s + 50 m/s = 150 m/s.
Using the formula distance = velocity × time, we can find the time it takes for the trucks to collide. Rearranging the formula, we have time = distance / velocity.
Therefore, time = 300 km / 150 m/s = 2,000 seconds.
Now, let's determine the distance the fly travels during each leg of its journey.
Since the fly is moving at a constant speed of 200 m/s, we can multiply its speed by the time it takes for the trucks to collide to find the distance it travels in one leg.
Distance = speed × time = 200 m/s × 2,000 seconds = 400,000 meters.
Since the fly has to travel this distance back and forth on each leg, we can multiply this distance by 2.
Total distance traveled by the fly = 2 × 400,000 meters = 800,000 meters or 800 kilometers.
Therefore, the total distance the fly will travel is 800 kilometers.