terrence and lamar start hiking from opposite ends of a 12 mile trial at the same time. terrence walks at a constant rate of 2.4 miles per hour and lamar walks at a consant rate of 3.1 miles per hour. write and solve a system of equations to determine when terrence and lamar will meet.

Respuesta :

To determine when Terrence and Lamar will meet, we can set up a system of equations based on their rates and the distance they need to cover. Let's break it down step by step:

1. Let's assume that Terrence and Lamar meet after t hours. This means that Terrence would have traveled a distance of 2.4t miles, and Lamar would have traveled a distance of 3.1t miles.

2. Since they are starting from opposite ends of a 12-mile trail, the total distance covered by both of them would be 12 miles. This gives us the equation: 2.4t + 3.1t = 12.

3. Simplifying the equation, we get: 5.5t = 12.

4. To solve for t, we divide both sides of the equation by 5.5: t = 12/5.5.

5. Evaluating this, we find that t is approximately 2.18 hours.

So, Terrence and Lamar will meet approximately 2.18 hours after they start hiking.

It's important to note that this is just one example of solving the problem. The exact values may vary based on the given rates and distance.