1952 AMC 12 Problem 48

Attempt Problem 48 of the 1952 AMC 12 below, then check your answer against the professionally curated solution from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 1952 AMC 12 solutions, or check the answer key.

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48.

Two cyclists, kk miles apart, and starting at the same time, would be together in rr hours if they traveled in the same direction, but would pass each other in tt hours if they traveled in opposite directions. The ratio of the speed of the faster cyclist to that of the slower is:

r+trt\dfrac{r+t}{r-t}

rrt\dfrac r{r-t}

r+tr\dfrac{r+t}{r}

rt\dfrac rt

r+ktk\dfrac{r+k}{t-k}

Answer: A
Concepts:relative speedrateratio and proportion
Difficulty rating: 1770
Small Hint:

Let the faster and slower speeds be uu and vv, and write the same-direction and opposite-direction relative-speed equations

Big Hint:

Use (uv)r=k(u-v)r=k and (u+v)t=k(u+v)t=k, then solve for uv\frac{u}{v}

Solution:

Let the speeds be u>v.u\gt v. The two meeting conditions give uv=kr,u+v=kt. u-v=\frac kr,\qquad u+v=\frac kt. Adding and subtracting these equations yields u=k2(1r+1t),v=k2(1t1r). \begin{aligned} u&=\frac k2\left(\frac1r+\frac1t\right),\\ v&=\frac k2\left(\frac1t-\frac1r\right). \end{aligned} Therefore uv=r+trt. \frac uv=\frac{r+t}{r-t}.

Thus, the correct answer is A.

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