A hovercraft takes off from a platform.Its height (in meters), x seconds after takeoff, is modeled by:h(x)=−2x2+20x+48What is the maximum height that the hovercraft will reach?meters
Q. A hovercraft takes off from a platform.Its height (in meters), x seconds after takeoff, is modeled by:h(x)=−2x2+20x+48What is the maximum height that the hovercraft will reach?meters
Identify Function Type: Identify the type of function and the general form of the equation.The function h(x)=−2x2+20x+48 is a quadratic function, which has a general form of ax2+bx+c. The graph of a quadratic function is a parabola. Since the coefficient of x2 is negative (−2), the parabola opens downwards, which means the vertex of the parabola will give us the maximum height of the hovercraft.
Find Vertex x-coordinate: Find the x-coordinate of the vertex of the parabola.The x-coordinate of the vertex of a parabola given by the equation ax2+bx+c is found using the formula −b/(2a). In our case, a=−2 and b=20.x-coordinate of the vertex = −b/(2a)=−20/(2×−2)=−20/(−4)=5.
Calculate Maximum Height: Calculate the maximum height using the x-coordinate of the vertex.Now that we have the x-coordinate of the vertex, we can find the maximum height by plugging it into the original equation h(x).h(5)=−2(5)2+20(5)+48h(5)=−2(25)+100+48h(5)=−50+100+48h(5)=50+48h(5)=98.
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