Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Soup Can Puzzle

Based on research on the Internet, we can assume the height of the bike is around 140 cm. 

I use the height of the letter "U" as a reference because it does not span over a curvature, thus more accurate. 

The height ratio of the letter U and the bike is: b : a = 3.3 : 7.1 (height is measure with a ruler, the unit or the scale of the image doesn't matter here)

As a result, the actual height of the letter U is b = 140 cm * 3.3 / 7.1 = 65 cm


Then I measure the ratio between the height of the letter U and the height of a normal size can, it turns out to be b: c = 1.5 : 16.

The ratio between the height of the letter U and the width of a normal size can is b:d = 1.5 : 10.

Thus, the height of the tank is  65cm * 16 / 1.5 = 693 cm, and the width of the tank is 65cm * 10 / 1.5 = 433 cm.

As a result, the volume of the tank is:

$V = \pi \times {\frac{d}{2}}^2 \times h= 3.14 \times {\frac{4.33}{2}}^2 \times 6.93 = 102 m^3$, which is equivalnet to around 102,000 L of water.

Based on some research, around at least 400 L/min of water is needed to put out a regular house fire, although this number can increase largely is the fire department arrives late. Generally speaking, this is enough water to put out a fire. 

My puzzle: 
General Sherman is a giant sequoia tree located in the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park in Tulare County, in the U.S. state of California. By volume, it is the largest known living single-stem tree on Earth.
Read more info about the tree online, based on the image below, how tall is the lady standing in front of the tree? 



1 comment:

  1. Generally good problem-solving, although I think you have overestimated the length, diameter and volume of the tank. Good extension question.

    ReplyDelete

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