You must get from a point P on the straight shore of a lake to a stranded
Question:
You must get from a point P on the straight shore of a lake to a stranded swimmer who is 50 m from a point Q on the shore that is 50 m from you (see figure). If you can swim at a speed of 2 m/s and run at a speed of 4 m/s, at what point along the shore, x meters from Q, should you stop running and start swimming if you want to reach the swimmer in the minimum time?
a. Find the function T that gives the travel time as a function of x, where 0 ≤ x ≤ 50.
b. Find the critical point of T on (0, 50).
c. Evaluate T at the critical point and the endpoints (x = 0 and x = 50) to verify that the critical point corresponds to an absolute minimum. What is the minimum travel time?
d. Graph the function T to check your work.
Step by Step Answer:
Calculus Early Transcendentals
ISBN: 978-0321947345
2nd edition
Authors: William L. Briggs, Lyle Cochran, Bernard Gillett