Question

most tools used by the first peoples were made of cedar, stone, and shells. they made tomahawks to cut wood and fell trees. a haida nation woman is watching her husband chop wood. the temperature is 7.63°c. she notices that her husband swings the tomahawk 0.214 s before she hears its sound. how far away is he?

1570 m
165 m
90.1 m
72.0 m

Explanation:

Calculate the speed of sound in air

To find the speed of sound at a specific temperature, we use the temperature-dependent formula for the speed of sound in air:

$$v = 331.4\text{ m/s} + (0.606\text{ m/s}\cdot^\circ\text{C}^{-1}) \cdot T$$

Given the temperature \(T = 7.63^\circ\text{C}\):

$$v = 331.4 + 0.606 \cdot 7.63$$

$$v \approx 331.4 + 4.62378 = 336.02378\text{ m/s}$$

Calculate the distance to the source

Using the Distance-Speed-Time knowledge point

$$
LATEXBLOCK0
$$

Match with the closest option

Comparing our calculated distance of \(71.9\text{ m}\) to the given choices:

• \(1570\text{ m}\)
• \(165\text{ m}\)
• \(90.1\text{ m}\)
• \(72.0\text{ m}\)

The closest value is \(72.0\text{ m}\).

Answer:

• 1570 m
• 165 m
• 90.1 m
• 72.0 m (Correct answer)