Pow 4: Planning the Platforms

Roan Harvey

Intro:
The town of Durango is getting ready for a big 4th of july band concert. This concert will
involve baton twirlers that are each standing on a different platform. The planner of the
performance wants the platforms to evenly increase in height. The decorator of the concert
wants to hang 1 large ribbon on the top of each platform. She needs to figure out how tall
each platform will be and the total amount of ribbon she needs for the performance.
Also, the decorator cannot do her job and find out how much ribbon she will need until the
constraints are solved. Therefore my task when solving this problem was to come up with
two formulas that will immediately tell us the height of the tallest platform and the total
length of ribbon we need.

Constraints:
● How many platforms do they need for the performance?
● What will the height of the first platform be (This will depend on the height of the
first baton twirler)
● What will the difference in height be between each platform?

Process and Solution for Kevin’s Equation:

The first thing that I did when solving this problem was come up with variables for each
constraint.
● S is the starting height for the platforms
● N is the total number of platforms for the performance
● D is the difference/added height between each platform
● H total height
I then decided I would first find the equation for the height of the tallest platform. To get
started, I worked with the sub we had last week. She reminded me of the slope intercept
equation, y=mx+b. I then realized I could translate that equation to fit my problem. I came
up with a few different options of what my equation could be. I inferred that if S is the
starting point of the platform our first equation is, S1 = B. Then moving to pillar 2 the
equation would be similar; you would just add another variable, S2 = B +M. But eventually it
will get hard to continue because you cannot add M every time so we want to make a more
general equation.
After talking with my peers I realized that I was missing an important piece to solve the
problem. I needed to add (N-1) to the final equation. In the end, I came up with
Hn =S+D(N-1).
Down below you can see a few things I thought about/tired when coming up with the
equation:

Process and Solution for Camille's Equation:

The next step when solving this problem was to find the equation for how much ribbon we
will need. I found this a bit more challenging. First, I identified a few more variables.
● Pn is for the pillars
● S is the starting height for the platforms
● D is added height
● L is the total length of fabric camille needs

I then came up with the open form for the equation.

1. P1 + P2 + P3 exc. represents the total height of all pillars, this will also be the length
of fabric the performance decorator will need.
2. Next I used the formula I found above (Kevin’s Formula) and the variables above to
make a new equation.
(Open form)
If P1 = S + D(1-1), P2 = S + D(2-1), and P3 = S + D(3-1), then
(S+D(1-1)) + (S+D(2-1)) + . . . + (S+D(x-D)) = F

I also with lots of help from the sub, Julian, and my classmates I was able to find the closed
form for this equation although I will say I am not sure I fully understand this equation.
F= (2S + D(2N-1))÷ 2

The last thing that I learned during this POW was a concept in math called the sigma
notation ( ∑ ). A sigma is a notation that allows you to write out a long and complicated
equation in a simpler form. A sigma notation would look something like this for our
formula…

Extension Question:
The planners of the 4th of July parade also need to figure out how many fireworks they
want to set off before the parade. They want to go above and beyond this year and set off 3
fireworks per child and 2 fireworks per adult for the whole population of the town. But they
are not sure of the total population of the town and they are also not sure how many
children there are compared to adults. Can you come up with an equation to solve this
problem?

Reflection:
This POW was very interesting overall. Though I did find it challenging I felt engaged when
attempting to solve this problem in class and with my peers. The part of the problem that
was the most difficult was finding the second equation. I was very confused when finding
that equation. But with help and some perseverance I believe I grasped the problem very
well. Also learning about the sigma notation was confusing at first and I would like to
practice it more, but now I have a basic grasp on the topic. I feel that throughout this POW I
improved my perseverance skills. There were many times that I didn’t understand
something and wanted to give up. But instead I pushed through to create something that I
was proud of. I am not sure that I got the right answer for all the different parts of this
problem but overall I understood the concept and I believe that is the most important part.