7.4.2 The Ladder Problem Flashcards Preview

AP Calculus AB > 7.4.2 The Ladder Problem > Flashcards

Flashcards in 7.4.2 The Ladder Problem Deck (6)
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1
Q

The Ladder Problem

A
  • Related rate problems involve using a known rate of change to find an associated rate of change.
  • Use implicit differentiation when you cannot write the dependent variable in terms of the independent variable.
2
Q

note

A
  • When a ladder slides down a wall, the rate at which it falls downward is not necessarily equal to the rate at which the base of the ladder moves away from the wall.
  • Suppose you are given a 13-foot ladder and you are told that the ladder is moving 6 feet per second away from the wall when the ladder is 12 feet away from the wall. What is the rate of change in the y-direction?
  • This is another example of a related rate. The rate at which a ladder falls downward depends on the rate at which the ladder moves away from the wall.
  • You want to know the rate of change in the y-direction when the ladder is 12 feet from the wall.
  • You are told that the rate of change in the x-direction when the ladder is 12 feet from the wall is 6 feet per second.
  • Because the Pythagorean theorem relates the distance away from the wall to the distance to the top of the ladder, the rates of change can be related by taking a derivative.
  • Notice that you can express the derivative of y with respect to time in terms of the derivative of x with respect to time, the x-value, and the y-value.
  • Substitute to find the value of dy/dt.
3
Q

Suppose a particle is moving from left to right along the graph of y = x^ 2. Find the rate of change of the distance between the particle and the origin at the instant x = 5 if the particle moves horizontally at a constant rate of 10 units / second. (In other words, dx / dt = 10)

A

100 units / second

4
Q

A winch on a motionless truck 6 feet above the ground is dragging a heavy load (see diagram).
If the winch pulls the cable at a constant rate of 1.5 feet / second, how quickly is the load moving on the ground when it is 11 feet from the truck?

A

1.7 feet / second

5
Q

Jim, who is 6 ft tall, is walking directly away from a 15 ft lamppost at a rate of 4 ft per sec. What is the rate of change in the length of Jim’s shadow when he is 8 ft from the base of the lamppost?

A

8/3 feet/second

6
Q

A 10 ft ladder is being pulled away from
a wall at a rate of 3 ft/sec. What is the rate
of change in the area beneath the ladder
when the ladder is 6 ft from the wall?

A

dA/dt=214 ft^2/sec

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