Harvard Bridge, which connects MIT with its fraternities across the Charles Rive

Question

Harvard Bridge, which connects MIT with its fraternities across the Charles River, has a length of 364.4 Smoots plus one ear. The units of one Smoot is based on the length of Oliver Reed Smoot, Jr., class of 1962, who was carried or dragged length by length across the bridge so that other pledge members of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity could mark off (with paint) 1-Smoot lengths along the bridge. The marks have been repainted biannually by fraternity pledges since the initial measurement, usually during times of traffic congestion so that the police could not easily interfere. (Presumably, the police were originally upset because a Smoot is not an SI base units, but these days they seem to have accepted the units.) The figure below shows three parallel paths, measured in Smoots (S), Willies (W), and Zeldas (Z). What is the length of 64.0 Smoots in Willies? _____________ Willies What is the length of 64.0 Smoots in Zeldas? ________________ Zeldas

Explanation / Answer

Solution: It is given in the figure that 0 to 212 Smoots equal to 0 to 258 Willies and 32 to 212 Smoots is equal

to 60 to 216 Zeldas.

(a) So, (212 -0)S = (258 - 0)W

1S = (258/212) =1.21698W.

64S = 1.21698*64 = 77.88679245W.

Hence 64Smoots is equal to 77.88679245W.

(b) So, (212-32)S = (216-60)Z.

1S = (156/180) = 0.8666667Z.

64S = 0.8666667*64 = 55.466667Z.

Hence 64 Smoots is equal to 55.466667 Zeldas.

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