Everyday Optimization Problems
1. A man was hiking in Yellow Stone National Park, he walked out too far near a hot
pocket, very close to one of the magma reservoirs. He needs to be rescued
immediately, and time is of the essence. The rescue team must stay as close to him as
possible so they can pass a rope to find him. The best spot for the rescue team must
be located along the magma reservoir boundary.
Let (3/4, 0) = (the location of the trapped man)
Let, “R” = x (this is the distance between the team and the trapped man.
R(x) = square root of (x-3/4)?+ (y(0) -OF
y-#
R(x) = square root of (x-3/4)? +x*
R(x) = I divided by 2 times the square root of (x-3/4)? + x" (then multiple both sides by 2 times
(6-3/4) +4 times x°,
R(x) =0 x-3/442 times x°=0
x05 y(0.5) = (0.5 =.025
The best spot for the rescue team and the closest point to the trapped man is (0.5, 0.25). This is
the spot to pass the rope to save the man’s life.
2. A farmer needs to enclose a field with a rectangular fence. He has 500 ft. of fencing
material and a building is on one side of the field and so he won’t need any fencing.
Determine the dimensions of the field that will enclose the largest area.
A=xy Constraint: x +2y = 500
We now solve the second equation for x and substitute the result into the first equation to express
A as a function of one variable:
x+2y = 500 == x = 500 ~ 2y == A= xy = (500 ~ 2y)y = 500y ~ 2y 2
To find the absolute maximum value of A = 500y~ 2y 2
O