SOLUTION: The Mississippi River is the second longest river in the U.S. flowing through 10 states. It flows 2340 miles from its start in Minnesota before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. W

Algebra ->  Linear-equations -> SOLUTION: The Mississippi River is the second longest river in the U.S. flowing through 10 states. It flows 2340 miles from its start in Minnesota before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. W      Log On


   

Question 1119626: The Mississippi River is the second longest river in the U.S. flowing through 10 states. It flows 2340 miles from its start in Minnesota before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. Water flows downhill at rates dependent on the grade or slope of the riverbed. The grade/slope of the Mississippi River varies along its entire length with water flowing faster in the steeper grades and slower in the more shallow grades. In this activity, you will discover the fastest and slowest parts of the Mississippi River using your knowledge of slope and provided elevation and distance data.




Mileage Between Cities Along the Mississippi
Twin Cities to LaCrosse 144 mi
Wickliffe to Memphis 171 mi
LaCrosse to Dubuque 129 mi
Memphis to Helena 48 mi
Dubuque to Quad Cities 70 mi
Helena to Vicksburg 133 mi
Quad Cities to St. Louis 312 mi
Vicksburg to New Orleans 161 mi
St. Louis to Wickliffe 154 mi


DATA ANALYSIS
Construct a graph using the data on the previous page. The x-axis will be the distance, in miles, from the Twin Cities and the y-axis will be the elevation of the city, in feet. For example, the (x, y) coordinates for the Dubuque will be (273, 620). Submit a graph. Label each point with the city name. Your finished graph should show the steepness or gradient of the Mississippi River from the Twin Cities all the way to New Orleans.





















Calculate the slope of the river, rounded to 3 decimal places, between the following cities.
Twin Cities and LaCrosse:
LaCrosse and Dubuque:
Dubuque and Quad Cities:
Quad Cities and St. Louis:
St. Louis and Wickliffe:

Wickliffe and Memphis:
Memphis and Helena:
Helena and Vicksburg:
Vicksburg and New Orleans:



What are the units on the slope?


In the context of this problem, what does the slope mean?



Using your graph and slope values, the Mississippi River flows the fastest between which two cities?



Using your graph and slope values, the Mississippi River flows the slowest between which two cities?
Found 2 solutions by solver91311, ikleyn:
Answer by solver91311(24713) About Me  (Show Source):
Answer by ikleyn(52781) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
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Hey,

in your post you presented the length of each part of the river,  and it is good.

But,  in order for calculate the slopes,  we should know the altitude/elevation  (the elevation over the sea level)  at each intermediate location.

In your post,  you did not provide this input,  and it is  BAD.

Without this input info,  the problem can not be solved.