And if so where are they most used?
2006-12-30 03:36:58 · 9 answers · asked by Siu02rk 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Mathematics
Yes, they're used all the time. Suppose you're designing a boat. Maybe you want it to be fast, but you also want it to be fairly stable at sea. By placing conditions, you are in effect insisting that the boat satisfy equations.
This is true, of course, in almost any situation where you're desigining an object or modifying and existing one so as to have more desirable properties.
The hard part is how to take these "real world" conditions and quantify them by mathematical equations. For instance, what really controlls how fast a boat will sail? Well, if your boat does not hydroplane, then its speed is limited by the length of its hull. On the other hand, you can imagine that a boat which is very long (but not very wide) may be more succeptible to rolling from side to side.
Anyway, I tried to choose an example which was quite general. If you want a "textbook" version of a "real world" problem, there are lots of easy ones:
1. Economics: finding the equlibrium point involves solving two simultaneous equations, namely the supply and demand curves.
2. Mathematics / Physics: given two equations which describe the position of two objects at any time, you can solve the two equations to find if they are ever at the same place at the same time.
3. Chemistry / Biology: if you want to find the age of an organic specimen by radio-carbon dating, you need to solve two equations: one to calculate the rate of decay of carbon-14 (from, say, looking up the half-life in a table), and two calculating the the age of the object.
4. Politics / Social Science: 90% of people like chocolate ice cream, 95% like vanila ice cream, 60% like strawberry ice cream. How many people like all three? (Here you're solving systems of inequalities.)
2006-12-30 03:58:41 · answer #1 · answered by Dr. Mobius 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Oh yes, simultaneous equations are key to many real world problems. Of course most of the people who need to do this are using giant computers to help themselves.
An example would be marine biologists who study the waves and wave patterns ranging from minutes to days to months to determine different aspects.
2006-12-30 03:40:29 · answer #2 · answered by San Jose 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Given that y = 25x + 35 And y = 22.5x + 50 It must be true that 25x + 35 = 22.5x + 50 Rearrange to get: 25x - 22.5x = 50 - 35 2.5x = 15 5x = 30 x = 6 .... and since x = 6, y = 25 * 6 + 35 = 150 + 35 = 185. The answer is x = 6, y = 185. Hope that helps!
2016-03-29 00:55:45 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, simultaneous equations can be used in many ways. For example they can be used to solve problems in such areas as Economics, Finance, Engineering, Science (all kinds) and basically all mathematics derived bases. They can be very effective for solving variables and unknown quantities within these areas.
2006-12-30 03:53:01 · answer #4 · answered by Dave C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes - all the time. Your mobile phone, for example, solves a set of simultaneous equations many times a second to achieve the optimum demodulation of the signals it receives.
2006-12-30 17:46:31 · answer #5 · answered by Martin 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think they are used to solve problems in the real world,but certainly not in every day life
2006-12-30 03:47:24 · answer #6 · answered by Lou 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. One example is in electric circuit calculations.
2006-12-30 05:34:03 · answer #7 · answered by Sam 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes all the time.
2006-12-30 04:24:41 · answer #8 · answered by Mark G 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes all the time in accounting, where there are many unknowns.
2006-12-31 00:09:44 · answer #9 · answered by Tropic-of-Cancer 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋