Bungling through a quiz:
(4 points) The height of a baseball above the ground, in feet, is given by the function:
[math]h(t)=-16t^2+60t+3[/math]
where t is the number of seconds after the ball made contact with the bat. Using the function, what is the height of the ball 4 seconds after contact with the bat (use correct units)? What does the answer mean, given the context of the problem?
My answer:
[math]
h(t)=-16t^2+60t+3
[/math][math]
t=4
[/math][math]
h(4)=-16(4)^2+60(4)+3
[/math][math]
-16(4)^2=-256
[/math][math]
60(4)=240
[/math]
-256+240+3 = -13 feet.
"The ball was hit so hard, it was drilled through the grass and into the foundation. Either that, or the formula is incorrect.
Furthermore, doing [math]16(4)^2+60(4)+3[/math] yields an answer of 499 feet, which even Mighty Casey couldn't accomplish.
-- Or Babe Ruth, for that matter. To each, his own."
(Corollary: I did speak with my instructor about my findings, just to prove I wasn't making fun of the quiz, and to further show the work and the logic of the findings. The thing I missed was the time span -- 4 seconds since impact; what goes up must eventually come back down, so -13 feet was intended to be interpreted as "ball is at ground level." He did give me credit for that answer, and the legwork involved to get said answer.)
you.'
