Problema Solution
Nicholas paddles his canoe downstream from the Lodge to Big Bend in 4 hours and then back upstream to the Lodge in 5 hours. If the distance from the Lodge to Big Bend is 30 miles, find Nicholas' speed in still water and the speed of the current.
Answer provided by our tutors
distance = speed * time
let 'v' represent Nicholas' speed in still water and let 'c' represent the speed of the current, then the speed upstream is 'v-c' and the speed downstream is 'v+c'
30 = (v-c)5
30 = (v+c)4
solving this system we have:
c = 0.75
v = 6.75
the current speed is 3/4 mph, Nicholas' speed in still water is 6.75 mph