Question7. The height above the ground of a bungee jumper is modelled by the
quadratic function , where height, ,
is in metres and time, , is in seconds.
a) When does the bungee jumper reach maximum height? Why is it
a maximum?
b) What is the maximum height reached by the jumper?
c) Determine the height of the platform from which the bungee
jumper jumps.
Studdy Solution
STEP 1
What is this asking?
We're finding out when a bungee jumper reaches their highest point, how high that is, and how high the platform is!
Watch out!
Don't mix up time and height!
Also, make sure you understand what each part of the equation means.
STEP 2
1. Find the time of maximum height.
2. Calculate the maximum height.
3. Determine the platform height.
STEP 3
Alright, so we've got this awesome equation where is the time and is how high the jumper is at that time.
We want to find the *biggest* value of , the **maximum height**.
STEP 4
Notice that pesky negative sign in front of the 5?
That tells us the squared term will *always* be negative (or zero) since anything squared is positive (or zero).
Multiplying by makes the whole term negative (or zero).
STEP 5
Since we're *subtracting* that term from 110, to get the *biggest* possible value for , we want to subtract the *smallest* possible amount.
The smallest can be is **zero**, which happens when .
STEP 6
**Solve for** :
So, the jumper reaches the **maximum height** at seconds!
It's a maximum because any other value of would make negative, and subtracting a negative number is the same as adding a positive number, which would make smaller.
STEP 7
Now, let's plug our **time of maximum height**, , back into our equation to find out just how high that is!
STEP 8
**Substitute** into the equation: The **maximum height** is meters!
STEP 9
The platform height is just the jumper's height at the very beginning, when .
Let's plug that into our equation!
STEP 10
**Substitute** into the equation: So, the platform is meters high!
STEP 11
a) The bungee jumper reaches maximum height at seconds. b) The maximum height reached is meters. c) The platform height is meters.
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