work and time

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work and time

by venmic » Thu May 05, 2011 10:07 pm
Bryan and Kathleen live 150 miles apart. They each drive toward the other's house along a straight road connecting the two, Bryan at a constant rate of 30 miles per hour and Kathleen at a constant rate of 50 miles per hour. If Bryan and Kathleen leave their houses at the same time, how many miles are they from Bryan's house when they meet?

A) 40

B) 51 1/2

C) 56 1/4

D) 75

E) 93 3/4

i know the simple way of doing this but i need to know the underlying concept

please help

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by rohu27 » Thu May 05, 2011 10:23 pm
Since you want to know the detailed explanation, im giving the same.
let both meet after time t.
in t hours Bryan travels 30t miles, Kathleen=50t miles.
this should be equal to the total 150 miles.
80t=150
t=15/8
we need to find distance traveleld by Bryan: 30t=30*15/8=225/4=56 1/4

option C

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by GMATGuruNY » Fri May 06, 2011 2:57 am
venmic wrote:Bryan and Kathleen live 150 miles apart. They each drive toward the other's house along a straight road connecting the two, Bryan at a constant rate of 30 miles per hour and Kathleen at a constant rate of 50 miles per hour. If Bryan and Kathleen leave their houses at the same time, how many miles are they from Bryan's house when they meet?

A) 40

B) 51 1/2

C) 56 1/4

D) 75

E) 93 3/4

i know the simple way of doing this but i need to know the underlying concept

please help
Approach 1: Determine what fraction of the work is performed by Bryan.

Every hour, Bryan and Kathleen travel 30+50 = 80 miles of the distance between them.
Bryan travels 30/80 = 3/8 of the distance.
Thus, he will travel 3/8 * 150 = 56.25 of the total distance.

The correct answer is C.

Approach 2: Determine the time traveled.

Combined rate for Bryan and Kathleen = 30+50 = 80 miles per hour.
Time to travel 150 miles = d/r = 150/80 = 15/8 hours.
Distance traveled by Bryan = r*t = 30*(15/8) = 56.25 miles.
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by venmic » Sat May 07, 2011 11:30 am
Awesome on explanation 1 - thanks

GMATGuruNY wrote:
venmic wrote:Bryan and Kathleen live 150 miles apart. They each drive toward the other's house along a straight road connecting the two, Bryan at a constant rate of 30 miles per hour and Kathleen at a constant rate of 50 miles per hour. If Bryan and Kathleen leave their houses at the same time, how many miles are they from Bryan's house when they meet?

A) 40

B) 51 1/2

C) 56 1/4

D) 75

E) 93 3/4

i know the simple way of doing this but i need to know the underlying concept

please help
Approach 1: Determine what fraction of the work is performed by Bryan.

Every hour, Bryan and Kathleen travel 30+50 = 80 miles of the distance between them.
Bryan travels 30/80 = 3/8 of the distance.
Thus, he will travel 3/8 * 150 = 56.25 of the total distance.

The correct answer is C.

Approach 2: Determine the time traveled.

Combined rate for Bryan and Kathleen = 30+50 = 80 miles per hour.
Time to travel 150 miles = d/r = 150/80 = 15/8 hours.
Distance traveled by Bryan = r*t = 30*(15/8) = 56.25 miles.