Introduction
MAT FPX 1050 Assessment 5 Attempt 1 Algebra in the Real World
Understanding algebra and how it can be utilized in everyday life could benefit many people. I personally apply algebra to real-life situations, and I will continue to use them in the future to improve the effectiveness of daily activities such as: creating schedules, whether it be for myself or my employees, cooking, taxes, budgeting, and shopping. In this report, I will identify and explain a formula that could be used in everyday life, a linear equation or slope that could be used in everyday life, Algebra that could be used in business or science, and a sequence or series that appears in real life.
An example of a formula that could be used in everyday life would be speed= distance/time. If you had to get to an appointment across town at 9:00 in the morning and the distance you need to travel to the meeting is 15 miles. The average speed of travel is 60miles/hr, and you want to know how long it will take to get to the appointment. You would use the formula speed = distance/time. We know that, in our case, the speed will be 60miles/hr and the distance is 15 miles, then we can write the formula as.
60 = 15 /time
time = 15/60
time = 0.25 hours
Therefore, it will take you approximately a quarter of an hour or 15 minutes to get to the appointment. So, to get there by 9:00 AM, you’ll have to leave before 8:45 AM.
An example of a linear equation or slope that could be used in everyday life would be calculating wages at work. For example, John earns $10 per hour. How much does he earn for working up to 2 hours?
(a) Write the linear equation.
(b) Draw a table and a graph showing his wages.
Answer:
(a) Let x = the number of hours worked and y = wages
The equation is y = 10x
MAT FPX 1050 Assessment 5 Attempt 1 Algebra in the Real World
(b)
| Number of hours worked x | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Pay ($), y | 0 | 10 | 20 |
Linear equations and slopes could also be used in science or healthcare to calculate medicine dosages. For example, medicine doses are calculated on people’s masses. A small child will receive less than a heavier adult. For a particular medicine, the dosage for a 10kg child is 50 milliliters.
(a) Write the equation.
(b) Draw a table and a graph for the dosages for people up to 30kg.
Answer:
(a) Let x = the patient’s mass and y = medicine dose
The equation is y = 5x
(b)
| Mass (kg), x | 10 | 20 | 30 |
| Dose (milliliters), y | 50 | 100 | 150 |
An example of a sequence or series that appears in real life could be after knee surgery, your trainer puts you on a jogging program that increases slowly. He suggests jogging for 12 minutes each day for the first week. Each week thereafter, he suggests that you increase that time by 6 minutes per day. So, you want to determine how many weeks will it be before you are up to 60 minutes per day jogging. You determine this by adding 6 minutes to the weekly jogging time for each week creating the sequence: 12, 18, 24, etc… This sequence is arithmetic. Each week you would add 6 minutes to the previous time and associate it with the week to determine which week you would be at 60 minutes.
MAT FPX 1050 Assessment 5 Attempt 1 Algebra in the Real World
Conclusion
Many concepts and equations in algebra could be utilized in the real world daily and I have personally used algebra very often if not daily. What surprised me the most about how algebra affects my personal life and business was how often I utilized algebra without even realizing it and how important it is to my day-to-day activities. When I’m at work I apply algebra by creating schedules and completing daily quotas. In my personal life utilize algebra daily with setting budgets and controlling spending. Algebra relates to many everyday situations and its very essential in real-world situations now and in the future.
