Applications of Rational Equations

A. Number Problem
The sum of the reciprocals of two integers is ¾. If the larger number exceeds the
smaller by 2, what are the two numbers?
 B. Work Problem
Working together, John and Mark painted a room in 8 hours. Last year, John painted the
room himself. The year before, Mark painted it by himself, but took 12 hours longer than
John took. Assuming the rates did not change, how long did John and Mark take, when
each was painting alone?
It takes Jordan 36 minutes to mow the lawn while it takes James 45 minutes to mow the
same lawn. If Jordan and James work together, using two lawn mowers, how long would
it take them to mow the lawn?
 C. Motion Problem

A boat covers a certain distance downstream in 1 hour, while it comes back in 3/2
hours. If the speed of the stream is 3kmph, what is the speed of the boat in still water ?
A boat can travel 16 miles up a river in 2 hours. The same boat can travel 36 miles
downstream in 3 hours. What is the speed of the boat in still water? What is the speed
of the current?
A piecewise function is a function where more than one formula is used to
define the output. Each formula has its own domain, and the domain of the
function is the union of all of these smaller domains. We notate this idea like
this:

𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎 1 ; 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛 1
𝑓(𝑥) = {𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎 2 ; 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛 2
𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎 3 ; 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛 3

How To: Given a piecewise function, write the formula and identify the domain
for each interval

1. Identify the intervals where different rules apply.

2. Determine formulas that describe how to calculate an output from an input
in each interval.
3. Use a bracket and “if” statements to write the function.

Examples:

1. A car rental company charges a flat fee of $45 to rent a car. In addition to
that you must pay a fee per day you rent it. If you keep the car for 3 days
or less, it costs $7 per day. If you keep the car longer than 3 days it only
costs $5 per day.
a. Write a piecewise function to represent this situation.
b. How much does it cost to rent for 3 days? 5 days?
2. Your favorite dog groomer charges according to your dog‛s weight. If your
dog is 15 pounds and under, the groomer charges $35. If your dog is
between 15 and 40 pounds, including 40 lbs, she charges $40. If your dog
is over 40 pounds, she charges $40, plus an additional $2 for each pound
over 40 lbs.

a. Write a piecewise function that describes what your dog groomer

charges
b. How much does your groomer charge if your bulldog weighs 60
pounds?
3. For a cellular phone billing plan, $50 per month buys 400 minutes or less.
Additional time costs $0.30 per minute.
a. Write a piecewise function that describes the situation.
b. How much would it cost for 543 minutes? 387 minutes?
4. You plan to sell t-shirts as a fundraiser. The wholesale t-shirt company
charges you $10 a shirt for the first 75 shirts. After the first 75 shirts you
purchase up to 150 shirts, the company will lower its price to $7.50 per
shirt. After you purchase 150 shirts, the price will decrease to $5 per
shirt. Write a piece-wise function that models this situation.