Key Concepts

Key Concepts

• To Solve an Application (with a formula)
  1. Read the problem. Make sure all the words and ideas are understood.
  2. Identify what we are looking for.
  3. Name what we are looking for. Choose a variable to represent that quantity.
  4. Translate into an equation. Write the appropriate formula for the situation. Substitute in the given information.
  5. Solve the equation using good algebra techniques.
  6. Check the answer in the problem and make sure it makes sense.
  7. Answer the question with a complete sentence.
• Distance, Rate and Time
  For an object moving at a uniform (constant) rate, the distance traveled, the elapsed time, and the rate are related by the formula: \(d=rt\) where d = distance, r = rate, t = time.
• To solve a formula for a specific variable means to get that variable by itself with a coefficient of 1 on one side of the equation and all other variables and constants on the other side.