Modeling with Quadratic Equations Answers

The main cable of a suspension bridge forms a parabola modeled by the equation y = a(x – h)2 + k where y is the height in feet of the cable above the road, x is the horizontal distance in feet from the right bridge support, a is a constant, and (h, k) is the parabola’s vertex. What is the maximum and minimum height of the bridge modeled by the equation y = 0.005(x – 60)2 + 8?

A soccer ball is kicked into the air from the ground. If the ball reaches a maximum height of 25 ft and spends a total of 2.5 s in the air, which equation models the height of the ball correctly? Assume that acceleration due to gravity is –16 ft/s2.h(t) = at2 + vt + h0

A quarterback throws an incomplete pass. The height of the football at time t is modeled by the equation h(t) = –16t2 + 40t + 7. Rounded to the nearest tenth, the solutions to the equation when h(t) = 0 feet are –0.2 s and 2.7 s. Which solution can be eliminated and why?

Carmen is using the quadratic equation (x + 15)(x) = 100 where x represents the width of a picture frame. Which statement about the solutions x = 5 and x = –20 is true?

A car’s stopping distance in feet is modeled by the equation where v is the initial velocity of the car in miles per hour and f is a constant related to friction. If the initial velocity of the car is 47 mph and f = 0.34, what is the approximate stopping distance of the car?

A rectangular pan has a length that is the width. The total area of the pan is 432 in.2. What is the width of the cake pan?A = lw

A firework is launched into the air from ground level with an initial velocity of 128 ft/s. If acceleration due to gravity is –16 ft/s2, what is the maximum height reached by the firework?h(t) = at2 + vt + h0

Both Rachel and Dominique throw tennis balls into the air. At any time, t, the height, h, of Rachel’s ball is modeled by the equation h = –16t2 + 30t + 5. Dominique throws his tennis ball with the same acceleration, a, from the same initial height, , but with an initial velocity, v, double that of Rachel’s. Which equation best models the height of Dominique’s tennis ball?h(t) = at2 + vt + h0

When using a quadratic equation in the form y = ax2 + bx + c to model the height of a projectile (y) over time (x), which of the following is always represented by the constant term?

The owner of an office building is expanding the length and width of a parking lot by the same amount. The lot currently measures 120 ft by 80 ft, and the expansion will increase its area by 4,400 ft2. By how many feet should the length of the parking lot be increased?A = lw