The distance from his toes to the water’s surface in feet t seconds after he leaves the board is d = -16t2 + 18t + 10.(a) How long does it take Ivan’s toes hit the water?

Question

(b) What might the constant term 10 in the equation tell you about Ivan’s jump?

Answer 1

(a)

Set d(t)=0 and solve the resulting quadratic equation for t using the quadratic formula. You will get a negative and a positive solution. Since t starts at t=0, only the positive solution is correct.

(b)

The constant is the initial height of the toes above the water.