Real-Life Math
You're the protocol officer for the governor. Right now you're planning a busy day of meetings for the governor, which includes a short flight to one of the state's major cities, called Hilltown.
You've scheduled a phone meeting with another government official, and you've scheduled a meeting with the Hilltown mayor. You're wondering if you could also squeeze in a third meeting with the Hilltown airport commissioner.
You look over the governor's schedule. Does he have time for another meeting?
"We tend not to use math too much on a day-to-day basis, but scheduling can be very challenging," says Jeannie Bates. She is a protocol official.
"We have to keep track of time and of event happenings, and make sure meetings don't conflict," she adds.
This is the governor's itinerary:
At 11 a.m., he will leave from his office in Sunnyside to go to the airport. The drive takes half an hour. (During this time, he will conduct a phone meeting with another government official.)
He must be at the airport 15 minutes prior to the flight, which leaves at 11:45 a.m.
The flight is 45 minutes in duration.
He will then ride downtown to meet with Hilltown's mayor at 1 p.m. The drive from the airport to the mayor's office will take half an hour.
The meeting with the mayor will last half an hour.
The governor is scheduled to return to the airport for a 3:45 p.m. flight, so that he will arrive back at his office by 5 p.m.
Questions:
- Does the governor have time for a 15-minute meeting with the Hilltown airport commissioner at the airport before he goes to meet with the mayor?
- Does the governor have time to meet with the airport commissioner after he has met with the mayor, and still make his 3:45 p.m. flight?