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| Question 245998:  A carpenter is building a rectangular room with a fixed perimeter of 240 ft. What dimensions would yeild the maximum area? what is the maximum area?
 Found 2 solutions by  ripplemehta, oberobic:
 Answer by ripplemehta(3)
      (Show Source): 
You can put this solution on YOUR website! perimeter of the rectangulatr room=240ft perimeter of a rectangle=2*(l+b)
 so 240=2*(l+b)so
 l+b=120
 so if l=x
 b=120-x
 area=x*(120-x)
 A=x(120-x)
 for maximum A dA/dx=0
 dA/dx=d/dx(120x-x^2)
 0=120-2x
 x=60ft
 length=60ft
 breadth=120-60=60ft answer
Answer by oberobic(2304)
      (Show Source): 
You can put this solution on YOUR website! P = 240 = 2L + 2W A = L*W
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 By theorem (or from calculus), we know the maximum area is a square, so:  L=W.
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 P = 2L + 2W = 4L = 240
 L = 60
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 So a 60 by 60 room is 3600 sq ft in area.
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 We can test the area by testing another room with dimensions close to 60 by 60 and P = 240.
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 Let's try 59 by 61.  P = 2(59)+2(61) = 118+122 = 240.  OK.
 A = 59 * 61 = 3599, which is less than 3600.
 .
 Let's try 58 by 62.  P = 2(58) + 2(62) = 116 + 124 = 240. OK
 A = 58 * 63 =  3596, which is less than 3600 and less than 3599.
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 Let's try 57 by 63.  P = 240. OK
 A = 57 * 63 = 3591, which is less than 3600 and less than 3599 and less than 3596.  The area is decreasing as the values get further apart.
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 How about 1 by 119?  P = 2(1) + 2(119) = 2 + 238 = 240.
 A = 1*119 = 119, which is way less...
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 Another way to look at this problem is the define the perimeter = 2C, where C = L+W.
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 That way L = C-W, so the area will be (C-W) * W = CW - W^2.
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 The maximum value of CW - W^2 is C^2/4, which occurs at W = C/2.
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 So, if W = C/2, and C=L+W, then L=C/2, so we have a square.
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