Changes

Jump to: navigation, search

Wagon collision

4 bytes added, 20:17, 24 July 2017
Help
==Help==
{{Solution| Let <m>x</m> denote the distance between City A and a vehicle (so either a wagon or a car) traveling on one of the roads. Similarly, let <m>y</m> denote the distance between City A and the other vehicle traveling on the other road. We can imagine these values together representing points in the unit square <m>I {{=}} \{(x,y) {{|}} \suchthat 0 \leq x,y \leq 1\}</m>. In the case of the cars, both vehicles start at City A and so <m>x{{=}}y{{=}}0</m> initially. As both cars traverse their respective roads to City B a continuous curve is drawn out linking the bottom left corner of $I$ to the top right corner. In the case of the wagons, both vehicles start at different cities, say <m>x=1</m> and <m>y {{=}} 0</m>. Thus, as both wagons move in opposite directions <m>x</m> is tending towards 0 (to City A) and <m>y</m> is tending towards 1 (to City B), and so a continuous curve is traced out from the bottom right corner to the top left corner. Since both curves link different corners they must intersect at some point in $I$. At this point of intersection each wagon must be at the exact position each car was at on their respective roads. Since the length of the rope attaching both cars was less than 2R and each wagon has radius exactly R both wagons must collide at this point.
}}
CheckUser, Bureaucrats, checkuser, developer, Administrators
1,021
edits

Navigation menu