SOLUTION: A man traveling 40 miles finds that by traveling one more mile per hour he would make a journey in 2 hours less time. How many miles per hour did he actually travel?

Question 198446: A man traveling 40 miles finds that by traveling one more mile per
hour he would make a journey in 2 hours less time. How many miles
per hour did he actually travel?
Answer by ankor@dixie-net.com(22740) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
A man traveling 40 miles finds that by traveling one more mile per
hour he would make a journey in 2 hours less time.
How many miles per hour did he actually travel?
:
Let s = mph he actually traveled
:
Write a time equation: Time =
:
Actual time - faster time = 2 hrs
- = 2
Multiply each term by s(s+1); results:
40(s+1) - 40s = 2s(s+1)
:
40s + 40 - 40s = 2s^2 + 2s
Arrange as a quadratic equation, (40s's cancel)
2s^2 + 2s - 40 = 0
Simplify, divide by 2
s^2 + s - 20 = 0
Factors to
(s-4)(s+5) = 0
The positive solution
s = 4 mph, actual speed
then
5 mph is the faster speed
;
Check solution find the times
40/4 = 10 hrs
40/5 = 8 hrs
RELATED QUESTIONS
A man traveling 40 miles finds that by traveling one more mile per hour he would make a... (answered by edjones)

A man completing a 40 km trip finds that by traveling one more km per hour, he could have (answered by josgarithmetic)

A man finds that he can reach a certain town in 6 hours by traveling 240 miles on an... (answered by greenestamps)

A man rode his bicycle 90 miles. If he had traveled 2/11 mile more per hour, he would... (answered by ikleyn,MathTherapy)

A man can travel 120 miles in either of two ways. He can travel at a constant rate of 40... (answered by stanbon)

If someone is going 76 miles an hour in a 55 miles per hour speed zone, how much time... (answered by Alan3354)

A canoeist paddles at a constant rate. He finds that it takes him 2 hours longer to make... (answered by lwsshak3)

A train traveling at 60 kph covers a given distance in 3 hours. By how many kilometers... (answered by Abbey)

Jermaine wants to know how fast he is traveling in a school bus, but he cannot see the... (answered by rothauserc,Boreal)