Question

Suppose a railroad is 1 km long, and it expands on a hot day by 10cm in length. Approximately how high would the center of the rail rise above the ground

Answer 1

ok if you assume a parabolic shape where arc length is 1km+10cm and the x-int are +-.5km
solve for vertex to get height at center
is this a calculus class?

Answer 2

there may be a formula i am unaware of

Answer 3

no its Quantitative Literacy....im lost with this class

Answer 4

ya Ill have to look in the book and see if I can find the equation for it

Answer 5

@akitav , that gives a height of about 707 cm
my parabola approach gives height of 625 cm, but solving is way more difficult :{