SOLUTION: Two pieces of rope that are equal in length. The first piece is 4 times the length of a piece of wood minus 1 inch. The second piece is 3 times the length of the same piece of wood

Algebra ->  Customizable Word Problem Solvers  -> Misc -> SOLUTION: Two pieces of rope that are equal in length. The first piece is 4 times the length of a piece of wood minus 1 inch. The second piece is 3 times the length of the same piece of wood      Log On

Ad: Over 600 Algebra Word Problems at edhelper.com


   



Question 130891: Two pieces of rope that are equal in length. The first piece is 4 times the length of a piece of wood minus 1 inch. The second piece is 3 times the length of the same piece of wood plus 14. solve and draw a graph. x as the variable for the piece of wood.
I know that 4x-1 and 3x+14 but not sure how to write it out correctly. Thank you for your help.

Answer by ptaylor(2198) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
ok So far, you are right on!!!!
Let x=variable for the piece of wood
And let y=the length of each piece of rope
Then y=4x-1 (red)-------------------------eq1
and y=3x+14 (green)--------------------------eq2
subtract eq1 from eq2:
-x+15=0
x=15 substitute this into eq1 or 2
y=4*15-1=59
y=3*15+14=59
This tells us that the wood is 15" and each piece of rope is 59"
+graph%28+300%2C+300%2C+-60%2C+60%2C+-60%2C+60%2C+4x-1%2C+3x%2B14%29+

Hope this helps--ptaylor