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Measure Twice, Cut Educational Funding
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via 8 Ball Run...I like their post title better!
via 8 Ball Run...I like their post title better!
I have a buddy who works for the city. When he started he was really confused when he got the uniform and the shirt pocket was upside down, but he quickly learned that's so you can hold a shovel and lean against.
ReplyDeleteThe story problem seems to have bad grammar but other than that my understanding is it takes 5 minutes for each cut made and since 5 min. x 3 cuts = 15 minutes. I don't understand why the answer would be 20 unless of course 4 cuts were being made like the note says in the margin.
ReplyDeleteYou're only making 2 cuts. You're sawing one board into 3 pieces.
DeleteAnon must be the teacher!
ReplyDelete0 cuts = 1 piece
1 cut = 2 pieces
2 cuts = 3 pieces
comprende?
To further elaborate
ReplyDeleteEach cut takes 10 minutes, so
0 cuts = 1 piece, 0 time
1 cut = 2 pieces, 10 minutes (as the first sentence in the problem informs)
2 cuts = 3 pieces, 20 minutes
Yes, the educational system has collapsed. The comments show that. The teacher's response shows why. It takes one cut to make two pieces, so that cut takes 10 minutes. To make three pieces takes two cuts. At 10 minutes each, that's 20 minutes. The student was correct and the teacher is a moron that should have that teaching license revoked.
ReplyDeleteYes, the educational system has collapsed. The comments show that. The teacher's response shows why. It takes one cut to make two pieces, so that cut takes 10 minutes. To make three pieces takes two cuts. At 10 minutes each, that's 20 minutes. The student was correct and the teacher is a moron that should have that teaching license revoked.
ReplyDeleteHear that OBAMA... more CUTS leads to more PEACE!
ReplyDelete10 minutes for a board? Is Marie sawing with the wrong (back) side of the saw??
ReplyDeleteSounds like this question...
ReplyDeleteIf Sam has 3 piles of dirt, and Sarah has 4 piles of dirt, how many piles would you have if you put them all together?
1 pile.
Delete1 pile.
DeleteSeven...duh
ReplyDeleteit took 22 minutes to do it. 37 minutes though if Marie and all her pieces of wood got in the way.
ReplyDeleteI don't know, let's ask Scott Stapp. Scott, how many piles are there?
ReplyDeletecaptain obvious... the answer is ONE...
ReplyDeletePut them all together, that makes ONE pile...
double DUH
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteThe real problem is that (many) teachers are no longer able to define a problem in such way that "one" only possible answer is correct.
Since no mention to the size and/or shape of the pieces (nor the original board) has been done, the problem has as many valid answers as one could imagine. Even the one propossed by the teacher!! and of course the one given by the alumn... and whatever Marie was able to saw... :-)
No need for the pieces to be of the same size or shape has been declared in the problem text... so: imagine a square board. Saw it into two identical rectangles. (10 min)
Saw one of these rectangles into two squares (5 min)
15 minutes in total, 3 pieces...
Saw the other rectangle into two more squares (5 min)
20 minutes in total, 4 pieces... sure you've got the idea...
Any amount of pieces can be achieved in any amout of time. In fact, the 10 minutes reference in the problem definition is basically useless since Marie could decide to start sawing a tiny corner... and then another one... or this corner into two pieces... or... whatever.
The more obvious is the one proposed by the alumn, three identical pieces from an original rectangle board require two cuts (20 min)
Agreed, this teacher should have the license revoked.
The answer is 15. Because it takes her 5 minutes to figure out how to hold the saw. Because she is a woman.
ReplyDeleteThe problem says she works JUST as fast, meaning it will take the same amount of time. So, if she works JUST AS FAST to cut a board into thirds, it will STILL only take ten minutes.
ReplyDeleteMr(s). Anonymous
ReplyDeleteCaptain Obvious was being sarcastic, in case you missed it.
Female with a saw...WATCH OUT!
ReplyDeletebut sawing a board into 2 pieces takes one cut, sawing a board into 3 pieces takes two, thus 20 is the correct answer....
ReplyDeletei just wanna know why its taking this "Marie" 10 minutes to saw a board
ReplyDeleteAnon on Oct 5, 10:42. Hate to tell you but your math is a little off on your fifteen measurement. If she were to cut straight through a rectangle to make two perfect squares and it took 10 minutes, the next cut would have to take 10 minutes too. All sides are of equal length on a square, and in this case they are all specifically equal to the original cut. She would have to cut the same distance to make two more shapes from her squares, thus taking her the same amount of time. There isn't a way around that unless she cut longways down a rectangle, in which case she wouldn't have squares. Your original premise states this, but you fail to follow through with a proper example.
ReplyDeleteYes, this teacher should have their license revoked.
1 cut= 10 minutes (two pieces)
ReplyDelete2 cuts= 20 minutes (three pieces)
20 minutes
this problem should be defined to a better extent bacause the picture to the right of it shows a linear stick being cut at a perpendicular angle; meaning that if it takes ten min to make the first cut and it is just a 2x4x8. It would not only take longer to try and cut the board parallel to the grain no matter the length of the piece, but to even make a second cut perpendicular would still take ten min making the answer greater or equal to 20 min.
ReplyDeleteActually, anon. was correct. Read more carefully and you'll see that the example started with a SQUARE and cut it into RECTANGLES, not the other way around. It would take half as long to cut through the resulting rectangles because they are only half as wide as the original square.
ReplyDeleteI have a hunch this happened in America. You guys really suck arse!
ReplyDeleteAnon above me apparently can't read. The anon you were responding to said cut a perfect square into two rectangles, not the other way around.
ReplyDeletestudent right, stupid teacher is wrong
ReplyDeleteAnon on Oct 5,10:42. It says "another board", not the same board, so the first cut doesn't count.
ReplyDelete> The problem says she works JUST as fast,
ReplyDelete> meaning it will take the same amount of time.
> So, if she works JUST AS FAST to cut a board
> into thirds, it will STILL only take ten
> minutes.
So if you drive down a 50 mile road and it takes an hour and the next day you drive down a 100 mile road and it takes you an hour as well, you drove just as fast as the other day?
Just following the answer key, which he/she assumed was correct.
ReplyDelete"The story problem seems to have bad grammar but other than that my understanding is it takes 5 minutes for each cut made and since 5 min. x 3 cuts = 15 minutes. I don't understand why the answer would be 20 unless of course 4 cuts were being made like the note says in the margin."
ReplyDeleteare you fucking stupid?
it starts at one piece taking 10 minutes to saw through making it 2 pieces...hopefully i didnt loose you yet
so you have 2 pieces now and want to saw through another to make 3 TAKING ANOTHER 10 MINUTES...
looks like whoever answered that question has too much logic for our public schools
The correct answer is... it depends!
ReplyDeleteIf a union is involved it takes an additional 24 hours to negotiate the wages.
that's not a board, it's a stud
ReplyDeleteHah, wow that is just sad... people should have an I.Q. examination done before they even attempt to get a job as teachers / professors...
ReplyDeleteCan the idiots agreeing with the teacher please go sit in the corner, we'll call you back to class when you're old enough to be educated.
ReplyDeleteThere are only two correct answers, the bad grammar answer, 10 minutes because she cut twice "just as fast" or 20 minutes because it's 2 cuts made "just as fast". The teacher is in need of a brain enema.
When I first saw this, I said to myself, "Wow. What are the odds that someone that idiotic ends up in a teaching position." Then I read the comments posted here and I realized that it's actually pretty damn likely.
ReplyDeleteOr Marie could ditch the hand saw and use a radial arm saw and it would take 10 seconds.
ReplyDeleteOf course you all forgot to factor in the time required to drive down to the lumber yard to get another board to cut. I'm figuring 1-1/2 hours minimum. Unless I stop for lunch, then let's say I'll have it to you sometime around 2. And I'll be submitting milage and lunch receipts.
ReplyDeleteThe real question is why is Marie playing with tools when she should be making sandwiches?
ReplyDeleteOr Marie could try not cutting boards and staying in the kitchen.
ReplyDeleteGood point that the question should be worded to exclude all but one answer, if there is supposed to be only one answer. ;) I think, since she already took ten minutes sawing the first board, if the next board is the same type of wood and same dimensions, with two cuts on the second board, thats ANOTHER 20 minutes totalling half and hour. The story problem never says to discount the time it took for the first cut. And working just as fast doesn't exclude the potential that each cut took 10 minutes each. I always have had problems with questions that were not worded conscisely enough, and got into it with many teachers too dumb to teach anything to anyone. It penalizes anyone with a brain.
ReplyDeleteWhat's Marie doing in a woodwork class anyway???;)?? Shouldn't she be making pastry or knitting something?
ReplyDelete7th grade math teacher here...'just as fast' implies 'at the same rate.' they are trying to force this into a proportions problem. in which case the teacher is right. however, it sucks to teach this stuff when curriculum writers don't take simple reality into consideration. how the heck am i supposed to show these kids how math is relevant for them???? as a teacher i would take the kid's answer. and btw, i would use the boards to hit all of you sexist talkers over the head.
ReplyDeleteYou are an idiot. Go make a sammich now. Why don't you use the board that Marie is taking so damn long to cut.
Delete"Good point that the question should be worded to exclude all but one answer, if there is supposed to be only one answer. ;) I think, since she already took ten minutes sawing the first board, if the next board is the same type of wood and same dimensions, with two cuts on the second board, thats ANOTHER 20 minutes totalling half and hour. The story problem never says to discount the time it took for the first cut. And working just as fast doesn't exclude the potential that each cut took 10 minutes each. I always have had problems with questions that were not worded conscisely enough, and got into it with many teachers too dumb to teach anything to anyone. It penalizes anyone with a brain."
ReplyDeleteAnyone with a brain would read the question, which clearly asks how long it will take to cut the second board. The problem isn't the question, it's the teacher.
the real question here is: How many americans are needed to saw a board?
ReplyDeleteAmericans, you are the polish of the internet.
If it takes 10 minutes to cut 1 board into 2 pieces or to simplify; 10 minutes to make 1 cut, it should take 20 minutes to make 2 cuts, creating 3 pieces.
ReplyDelete... these comments make me lose hope in humanity.
ReplyDeleteThe question is not badly worded, there are no hidden traps here, no hidden meanings. The teacher is wrong, the student was correct. Stop trying to find a loophole here...
It specifically asks how much time she needs to saw ANOTHER piece of wood into three pieces, the picture is just a friggin sketch to lighten up an elsewise boring math exam. Since she works as fast as before she takes 10 minutes per cut, two cuts for making three pieces, 20 minutes..
There really is nothing else to it. The picture is irrelevant, the wording is completely correct and making it any more specific would not help. Stop trying to be witty about it, it's a bleeding 5th grade math exam.
What made me laugh about this was how people automatically assumed teacher = right student = wrong without even thinking about the puzzle. Sad cry out when people just accept authority like that.
ReplyDeleteThe real question is... Why the hell is Marie using her husbands tools?
ReplyDeleteNo the kid is right when I last checked 1 cut makes two pieces therefore 2 cuts makes three and each cut takes 10 mins so it would take 20mins to make three pieces
ReplyDeleteThe problem isn't the math, it's the question. No one bothered to check their dumb contrived scenario to ensure it makes sense.
ReplyDelete2/10 = 3/x, x = 15
I can't think of a poorer way to teach proportions than this sort of question. It's really bad.
Ok, so, just, "wow". I'm hoping like hell that:
ReplyDeleteA) a kid kighted an extra test so could post a fake
B) the teacher created the test herself and and didn't vet it because she was in a rush.
If this came from a standardized packet of test materials... Oy.
fucking retard the answer is 15. the schools are fine your just burnt
ReplyDeletethe answer is 15 idiot
ReplyDeleteHow many people do we need in here to explain the same thing over and over again?
ReplyDelete>implying one teacher's simple mistake can be used to judge the status of the educational system on a whole
ReplyDeleteWow.. I wonder how many of you have actual jobs? If I gave an employee a question like this & they came back with the bullshit you guys have, they'd get fired on the spot. It's a simple question with a simple answer, that does not require any specialized knowledge or reasoning (sorry Teacher, but common sense is not supposed to be special).
ReplyDeleteIt appears many of you are so eager to appear intelligent and insightful, you miss the very clear directions given. There is a drawing supplied that very clearly shows we are not talking about cutting squares. It also clearly states "another board", so we are not talking about multiple cuts of the original board. And there is NO ambiguity when someone "works just as fast"; apparently some of you are incapable of separating the concepts of working speed versus time taken- they are NOT the same thing. Anon 10/6 6:31 stated it quite nicely.
The "logic" shown in these comments is typical of a teenage mindset- always ready to challenge orders and ideas, rather than doing what is clearly explained and expected of you. Fortunately, most of you will grow out of this shit after being in the workforce for a while, where it is results that are rewarded, not coming up with creative ways of avoiding what's expected of you.
the answer is simple, 20, there is no other answer there is nothing deeper in the question. Other then the sad fact that kids teacher is an idiot and will ruin the kids mind
ReplyDeleteI really loves these things and enjoy what people have to say about the simplest things. The dirt was a good one, that was cool. The questing about the board cutting, the student was correct which is nice to see. As far as it being a female doing the cutting, I have worked with all kinds good, bad, male and female, it's not the gender that's makes the cut it is the person. Please try to be nice to each other and enjoy the world around you.
ReplyDeleteslow ass americans, 10 min to cut thru one board?? it should only take 2-3 at most.
ReplyDeletealso the child is dead on.
a teacher made one mistake. i'm sure the student went up to his/her after class and got the credit. A lot of students probably wrote 20.
ReplyDeleteI hate to admit it, but this actually confused me, too. I'm too used to going straight for the number, instead of understanding the text, during math. In which case (10/2)*3 = 15. However, after rereading, I obviously am able to see why that is not correct. 'S what happens when you look at something quickly, and think, "Oh, that must be it-.. Wait, oh. No. Like that."
ReplyDeleteI still don't get how the teacher got it wrong, though... I mean, wow. If you read the question carefully, it's not exactly rocket science. Not to mention, don't teachers have a list of answers? Even for stuff like this?
Well to cut it into two pieces, you make one cut. That means one cut takes ten minutes. To cut it into three pieces requires two cuts. That would mean that it takes twenty minutes to cut the board into three pieces. Come on people, are you stupid? This is 4th grade math.
ReplyDeleteThat didn't look like a teacher made test, probably a typo on the answer key. You'd be shocked how many of those your teachers have caught (and adjusted) over the years.
ReplyDeleteTechnically, it is an open ended question, although I do not believe that was the intent. There are no dimensions given, second board could be thinner or thicker, who knows? From the comments above, I agree, it was supposed to be a proportions question, but was incorrectly done.
Where math questions have undefined variables, you have to assume a constant for all.
ReplyDeleteThe answer is 20 mins - 10 mins per cut.
1 cut = 2 pieces
2 cuts = 3 pieces
The answer is NOT:
10 mins (just as fast) -
Stop being so retarded. If you're cutting at x speed and you repeat this speed, it's not going to be twice as fast for the next 2 cuts.
15 mins -
Don't get me started. There's no explanation as to why this would even be entertained since the question has already defined 1 cut to equal 10 mins. By introducing the 'half-again' argument, you're introducing a completely new factor to which the question never asked.
Math is a literal subject. 10+10 will always equal 20 in decimal. As soon as you start arguing with non-defined factors, you've failed at math.
yeah this is right... it took ten minutes to cut it into two... its gonna take another ten minutes to cut it twice... think about it
ReplyDeleteone= no time
two= ten minutes
three= twenty minutes
four= thirty minutes
This is so straightforward, I don't get why everyone is saying there are "multiple answers." This can only be a grade school test, and grade school tests don't usually have more than one answer. Lets look at the problem again...
ReplyDelete"It took Marie 10 minutes to cut a board into 2 pieces."
This indicates that it takes her TEN minutes to make ONE cut.
"If she works just as fast, how long would it take her to saw another board into 3 pieces?"
This indicates that she has to get another board out & cut it TWICE. It also indicates that she's working just as fast. The problem is also only asking for the time it takes her to cut the board. Lets strip the problem down.
It takes Marie 10 minutes to saw through a board once. How long would it take her to saw through a board twice if she works at the same rate?
SO:
1 cut = 10 minutes
2 cuts = 20 minutes
Teachers should READ the questions on their tests before they even make the answer key. It's no wonder kids these days have trouble in school!
you people are all morons and have no respect for the teaching profession or the educational authorities. the teacher even had the courtesy to draw a chart explaining the correct reasoning and you STILL need your hands held? fine then i'll humor you knuckel-draggers:
ReplyDeleteMarie saws out boards at the rate of two boards / five minutes. this rate is constant -- "just as fast," so we know that 2 boards / 5 min = 3 boards / x min. then we just need to solve for "x". cross multiply, bing bang boom, answer is 15 minutes. Q.E.B.!!
look you reatards probably couldn't follow that so just take my word for it: i got almost 550 percentile on my math SATs and i'm majoring in computer forensics next year at devry.
Deshawn Swanson, and everyone else who assumes the teacher is still correct, please read the question. Like seriously, wtf. It seems like you all have been missing, "Marie took 10 minutes to saw a board into 2 pieces." There is 1 board to begin with. Not that tough to understand, the grammar is also correct.
ReplyDeleteDeshawn, coming form a black community I definitely understand how your education is. Very poor. Everyone in my class including me got 800 in the SATs math section. 550 is actually really bad. Plus, "bing bang boom" is a very poor description term.
Except it's measured in "cuts" not "boards." If she saws one piece of wood in half to make two pieces, it takes ten minutes. If she saws one piece of wood into thirds to make three pieces, it takes twenty minutes because she has to make two cuts.
ReplyDeleteHow is this difficult to grasp.
it takes 10 minutes to get 2 pieces.
ReplyDelete10 divided by 2 is 5
thus, if she wants 3 pieces, it would take 15 minutes.
it's a math problem. what happened to teaching context.
Though I agree that the teacher is incorrect, I can see how the thinking went. It doesn't say that the first 10 minutes was ONE cut. If you cut two pieces off a board at 5 minutes each cut then to make three pieces takes three 5 minute cuts. I think that's what the teacher was thinking to come up with 15 minutes. Teacher didn't read the question rationally.
ReplyDelete50 mph and going 50m then doing 100 mph and going 100m does not mean you are going just as fast. Either way it takes an hour, but the speed (fastness) is doubled. Shit for brains
ReplyDeleteYou know... this problem is really simple and it seems so many of you are completely over-thinking.
ReplyDeleteShe has a board. She saw it in half and it takes 10 minutes. She then takes one of those halves and cuts that in half therefore taking HALF the time (5 min).
It should be stated clearer in the problem, but this isn't rocket science. The logic is there.
i personally would like to add wtf is she using a hand saw for that takes that long to cut a power tool does it in seconds literaly i watched a rock saw designed for marble cut threw 2 inch thick marble witch mind you is pretty hard compared to wood and the cut took seconds it was a 18x18 size sheet witch is only a sq foot and half but none the less
ReplyDeleteand it also doesnt say what grade this is for if this is for an elementary student how are they suppose to put logic in question that presents its self with no one right answer but on the contrary if it was some college class i suppose the student could be wrong
ReplyDelete"You know... this problem is really simple and it seems so many of you are completely over-thinking.
ReplyDeleteShe has a board. She saw it in half and it takes 10 minutes. She then takes one of those halves and cuts that in half therefore taking HALF the time (5 min).
It should be stated clearer in the problem, but this isn't rocket science. The logic is there. "
Apparently for you, it IS rocket science -- it clearly says 'another board', not 'one of the halves of the board'
Nice comments, Deshawn Swanson. Except that you're completely wrong. She saws *one* board into *two* pieces. This takes *one* cut.
ReplyDeleteCalling people retards and boasting about your (inferior) SAT score, whilst being completely wrong, just makes you look like not only a fool, but an arrogant one at that.
I don't know what's more mind blowing, how retarded this teacher is, or that half the commenters actually agree with the teacher.
ReplyDeleteAlmost certain it could be both, but the students answer would be correct with the diagram. It all depends on HOW the board was cut
ReplyDeletecutting a horizontal board into three vertical pieces....
no wait that still makes the student right....
wtf teacher? perhaps he/she was thinking they were creating the boards out of thin air.
OH WAIT I know how they could do it, if you had a circular board (think a tabletop) and saw it to the center 3 times it would be 3 half-cuts, which would be 5 minutes each or 15 minutes.
There, I think that works
but in the end the picture supplied with the statement would make the students answer the most logical.
Okay, I agree with everyone that feels the question is poorly worded and could lead to multiple answers. Taking the example of a square board both 15 mins and 20mins could be right. The rate stays constant because Marie works "just as fast". The question does make it clear that one board is cut into two pieces in ten minutes. For clarity we will assume she made a straight line down the center of the board. Obviously this is not clear from the problem but is the simplest way of thinking about it. Two make three pieces the same cut could be made to a second board. this leaves her with a rectangle. The length of the short side is half the length of the long side because it came form a square cut straight down the center. If Marie cuts down the long way at the same rate (a certain distance per minute) she would take 10more minutes and get 20 minutes total. If she cut the short way she would get 5 minutes more. This would give us 15 minutes like the teacher said. However I don't believe this was the teachers thought process, because the picture provided would lead to the same distance being cut in both cuts as the simplest way of cutting the board into three pieces.
ReplyDeleteGod save America ! Someone needs to , and it isn't going to be Deshawn Swanson.
ReplyDeletefirst off, Deshawn Swanson, 550 is pretty bad on math sat's (and its not percentiles. if it was graded in percentiles then the highest would be a perfect score and 99th percentile. im not going to explain that, if your so good at math you should understand it). i got a 680 and that was still pretty low. second not a lot of difficult math in computer forensics or at devri for that matter, take it from a 3rd year engineering major, its my job to solve problems. the only way the answer could possibly be 15 minutes is if the question said she cut two pieces off the board. if she cut two pieces off the board in 10 minutes that would imply 5 minutes per cut. however the question did not say she cut two pieces off the board, the question says she cut the board in two pieces, implying 10 minutes per cut, therefore 20 minutes for 2 cuts and 3 pieces. and on the just as fast thing... really? question says the speed at which she makes cuts is constant. not much room for interpretation there. still having trouble as to why this is such a difficult concept to grasp for a bunch of people im going to assume have made it past 5th grade....
ReplyDelete-stupid people who convince themselves they are correct are fucking annoying
who is more worthless the teacher who made a retarded algebra 1 mistake that most of us would figure out before 6th grade or the student who does not explain the correct answer to the teacher to get their points back and instead posts it to the Internet and says cut educational funding when our nation is leaps and bounds behind the international standard.
ReplyDeleteMarie, like all other women should not be allowed around sharp instruments.
ReplyDeleteDidn't anyone consider that this is a set up? Maybe this was done by one and the same person? Why did so many people respond to this? I'm retired and have a lot of time on my hands to read nonsense. Why are the rest of you wasting your time?
ReplyDeleteFor all of you idiots who agree with the teacher, get your lazy ass up from the computer, go in the garage and actually cut up a couple of boards. If you can't reason it out, try a "hands on" lab. If that still doesn't help....well, better start practicing "would you like fries with that"
ReplyDeleteThese comments depress me.
ReplyDeleteWorking 'just as fast' doesn't mean that she takes the same amount of time (or if it does it has been expressed extremely poorly). It refers to her speed.
If she worked just as fast (i.e. her speed is the same), it would still take her 20 minutes to cut the board into 3. She would need to work at double the speed in order to cut the board into 3 pieces in 10 minutes.
deshawn swanson ...... others have already said why your wrong on most parts but the bits that annoyed me was your poor grasp of maths.
ReplyDelete"2 boards / 5 min = 3 boards / x min. then we just need to solve for "x". cross multiply, bing bang boom, answer is 15 minutes. Q.E.B.!!
First thats not the equation your asked to solve as you would end up with x = 7.5 .
and second its not Q.E.B. its Q.E.D. "quod erat demonstrandum" or "Quite easily done".
Oh guys... think about it in the context of a math test. The aim of the test is for students to show their skills with proportions (2 boards/10 min = 3 boards/x min), not simple multiplication (1 cut=10 min, 2 cuts= x min). The challenge in this problem is the "riddle" of thinking about how many cuts it takes to make so many pieces of board, which would be an easy thing to look over when doing a test where the other problems are more straightforward. Props to the kid for getting the right answer. And the question IS clear about how the board is being cut. Don't you remember word problems? When are you ever asked to consider variables that aren't mentioned (ie shape of the board). It's a poorly designed question for the concept they are trying to test, and the teacher obviously corrected the answer based on the math concept, not the wording of this unique situation where ONE action yields TWO results. I say it's a fair mistake to make.
ReplyDeleteBoard
ReplyDeletePiece_cut_piece_cut_piece
1/10min/1/10min/1 = 20min
O.k. How come no one picked up on the person who said that an 18" square of marble is one and a half square feet in size when its two and a quarter square feet?
ReplyDeleteLol! I love how many people in the comments agree with the teacher. This should be the official Darwinism test where we weed out the stupid people
ReplyDeleteWhoa.... sad reading. BTW Deshawn, DeVry is a crap school, don't brag about it. They will accept anyone to their courses who can pay/get loans to cover the ridiculous fees.
ReplyDeleteMarie takes a board and cuts it in ten minutes, according to the drawing she has made one cut across the board resulting (presumably) in two roughly equal halves in 10 minutes.
She then takes ANOTHER board (as in the same as the first) and working AT THE SAME RATE cuts it into three pieces. No matter how you spin this, that takes two cuts across the board resulting (we hope, if she uses a measure) in three similar pieces.
Some notes: No info given or implied about different size boards.
Just as fast really does mean cutting at the same rate, so for the same size board each cut takes just as long.
A BOARD is not a square, it is longer than it is wide by a significant amount, also known as a plank in England, e.g. a floorboard (not a sheet as in plywood for example).
Most importantly, NO MATTER HOW MANY TEACHERS CLAIM IT IS, THE QUESTION IS **NOT** ABOUT PROPORTIONS, it is simply looking to see if you're paying attention, which clearly many of you aren't.
Try asking a carpenter or builder this question.
I would say this problem is worded bad. The first sentence makes the persons answer right. It took 10 minutes to cut the board into two pieces. This means she made one cut to get it into 2 pieces in 10 minutes. Then to make three pieces she would need to cut another board. That is 10 minutes to cut. I think 20 minutes is right.
ReplyDeletewell let me explain... cut 1 piece of wood 2x you would have 3 pieces. one cut takes 10 min so 2 cuts would take 20. the question is just worded wrong. it should say it took 10 minutes to make 2 cuts not it took 10 minutes to cut the board in 2 (that would be just one cut)
ReplyDeleteOne cut takes 10 minutes, that will give 2 pieces. Another cut, assuming same size and thickness along the board will take another 10, hence 20 minutes. Simple.
ReplyDeleteTEacher made an honest mistake because he/she was assuming to follow a certain rule due to the wording of the question. But student is correct.
Actually, there IS a way to make it 15 minutes, due to lack on info.
ReplyDeleteIf i took a square piece of wood, and cut it non-diagonally down the middle into two pieces, that would take 10 minutes. Now i flip one of the pieces on its side and cut from across, since that distance is 1/2 the length, it would take 5 minutes. Therefore in that scenario, the answer is 15 minutes.
The teacher was trying to show a method of working, but didn't pay attention. Easy mistake to make, and the teacher logically is correct but the info in the question would need to reworded.
Elementary Math Guru
Damn, a lot of you must be related to my 10th grade algebra teacher, who flunked me because he said my method was wrong, but could not prove it after MANY problems on the blackboard. This was not an algebra test! The teacher is an asshole. The student was correct, and should probably be tutoring the teacher after class.
ReplyDeletei find this problem quite shallow and pedantic...
ReplyDeleteDear that guy's teacher: And you teach kids?
ReplyDeletelol
ReplyDeletenope: it will take around 2 min
just cut of the little corners
like this
http://tinyurl.com/35m8xcj
if she sawed a board into 2 pieces, not if she sawed 2 pieces off a board
ReplyDeleteI dont know if this was said yet and im not reading the comments to see, its not that it takes ten min to to make one cut it takes ten to cut two (just think if you need two 4ft boards and only have a 10ft board it takes two cuts) so i think thats what the teacher was getting at.....
ReplyDeletewell, if the bitch took ten minutes to saw the board in half, then it would be a better idea to let her husband/boyfriend to do the man work and she should stick to making him a goddamn sandwich.
ReplyDeleteWho's gonna wash those dishes when she's taking way too much time sawing on a board for some stupid woman thing? I mean, she could make like twelve sandwiches in that amount of time, or prep a turkey for the oven! And how did she get the keys to the garage to get the tools out in the first place? She shouldn't even be out of the kitchen unless she's delivering sandwich/plate combo to man/mouth combo.
well, if it's a ten minute cut, even though that is an unnecessary amount of time to do the said chore, and she kept at the same pace for two more cuts, then it would take twenty minutes. she must be cutting a 2 by 6 with a blunt steak knife.
ReplyDeletei thought the answer was 10 mins. Because the questions says if she works "just as fast". just as fast would be 10 mins as well in my mind.
ReplyDeleteThe problem says that the girl works at the same speed. It does not, however, specify whether or not the second board is identical to the first one. Difference between the two boards would result in different necessary cutting time.
ReplyDeleteAt everyone mentioning that if she saws "just as fast" it will take the same amount of time to do 2 cuts as it does 1 you are wrong I'm afraid. Just as fast means that she is sawing at the same speed. So as speed is distance over time changing one will affect the speed. If she works just as fast she will not make the two cuts in the same time as one because then she has gone double the distance and if the time is the same her speed will have increased, so to work "just as fast" the distance must be proportional to the time to keep the speed the same.
ReplyDeleteFor example if the board is 5 metres long and takes her 10 minutes to cut it in half then she is sawing at 0.5 metres per 60 seconds or 0.0083333 m/s if she then does two cuts of 5m in 10 minutes then that would be 10 metres in 10 minutes then she would be sawing at 1 metre every 60 seconds or 0.016666 m/s or twice as fast.
T/dr wall of maths away!
With cross-sectional cutting:
ReplyDelete10 minutes = 1 cut
1 cut = 2 pieces
2 cuts = 3
3 cuts = 4
The number of pieces P left by N cuts is N+1, and when N=0, P=1. Period. Stacking would take additional time (in ratio to the greater thickness of the cutting cross section). You may be able to make 4 pieces with two cuts, but the second cut will take you twice as long (since it is actually two cuts).
The teacher's logic only applies if the board is a square piece of plywood, in which case the cutting is not cross sectional, nor is the object still a board. This entire argument is pointless. The teacher is retarded, and there is far to little information to answer this question correctly
The teachers logic is:
ReplyDeleteIt takes 10 minutes to produce 2 pieces.
The Rate of production is 1 piece per 5 min.
It took Marie 10 minutes to sculpt a block of ice into two sculptures. If she works just as fast, how long will it take her to sculpt another block of ice into three sculptures?
Why the teacher is right:
ReplyDeletehttp://dl.dropbox.com/u/8897692/lolcuts.png
2/10 • 3/X
ReplyDelete2X = (10•3)
2X = 30
X = 30/2
X = 15
This is a math problem not a logic problem. Yes, the question was worded poorly, but the teacher is correct from a mathmatical standpoint. The sad truth is none of you even considered doing this using algebra.
Simple cross multiplication.
If you cut one board thats 10 minutes, then to cut three more boards is 10 x 3 = 30 minutes
ReplyDeleteThe answer should be 30 minutes.
Simple.
This is why the Governor of NJ is fighting the NJEA! Right now in NJ-this teacher would be teaching forever!
ReplyDeleteMy daughter once had a Math teacher who mixed up the "more than" and "less than" signs AND didn't know the difference between "percents" and "percentiles" -in the 7th grade! Oh boy! She's still teaching somewhere...
Trick question. Marie can't saw anything - she's a woman.
ReplyDeleteHere it is in a nutshell:
ReplyDeleteIf you agree with the teacher in anyway at all then you are a F*'N LIBERAL!
If you see the problem as it is and therefore agree with the student then you are a F*'N REPUBLICAN!
Nuff said!
I love all the well if the board was a square, and then cut into a rectangle, and then the third section cut along the shorter diameter people.
ReplyDeleteWell, if the board was originally a square, and then cut into two equal triangles. Then the third piece could be cut from near the edge of one of the triangles. This could probably take less than a minute. So the real answer is approximately 11 minutes.
I have a better question than the one in the picture.
ReplyDeleteWhy do so many of you lack reading comprehension?
So I'm pretty sure the teacher interpreted 'pieces' as 'cuts'...Saws the board into two pieces? Interpreted as saws the board twice. Saws another board into three pieces? Intrepreted as saws the board three times. There's the teacher's thought process, I bet. And everyone else who agrees with the teacher.
ReplyDeleteWow, its things like this that remind me how much easier life is for people one notch below smart. All you assholes patting yourself on the back for getting "the right" answer of 20 are the one notch below smart people that this world is designed for. If you think about it there are a whole bunch of reasonable answers to this problem, as the (very few) actual smart people on here have actually realized. And yes, 15 is one very very valid answer. God I hate such questions. Like on standardized tests. I always have to think what would a person who thinks they are smart answer this question as?
ReplyDeletewhy saw the board? Go planking!
ReplyDeleteI think its a poorly worded question, though i understand it after reading it i did have to double take.
ReplyDeleteI wouldnt expect a teacher to scrutinise the text before marking the answer, i probably would have done the same thing.
Technically, if you have a 4+ foot piece of wood, and you cut off two 1 foot pieces, and that took 10 minutes... if you cut off one more piece, it'd take 15 minutes, total.
ReplyDeleteBut, I still think the student is right because of how it's worded.