2 ants cross a counter 54cm long, one travels at 16 meters per second, and the other at 3.99999 centimeters per second. when the first crosses the finish line how far behind is the second?
To answer this question first it helps to know the first ants speed as cm/s:
16 meters/second * 1000cm/m = 1600 cm/s
Which means that the first ant will reach the end of the counter in .034 seconds. The second ant is traveling at 3.99999 cm/s which means it will reach the counter in 13.5 s. So:
13.5-0.034 = 13.466s
The second ant is 13.466 s behind the first ant. Thus:
3.99999 cm/s * 13.466 s = 53.86 cm
The second ant is 53.86 cm behind the first ant when the first ant crosses the finish line.