Question 446642
Nicole and Stan share a newspaper route. 
Nicole can deliver papers 3 times faster then Stan. 
If they work together it takes them one hour. 
How long will it take to deliver the papers alone?
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Let Stan's time = 3x hrs/job ; then his rate = 1/3x job/hr
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Nicole's time = x hrs/job ; then her rate = 1/x job/hr.
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Together time = 1 hr/job ; their rate = 1 job/hr
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Equation:
rate + rate =  1
1/(3x) + 1/x = 1
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Multiply thru by 3x:
1 + 3 = 3x
4 = 3x
x = (4/3) hr or 1hr 20 min (time for Nicole to do the job alone)
3x = 4 hr (time for Stan to do the job alone)
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Cheers,
Stan H.