# Thread: direct and inverse variations

1. ## direct and inverse variations

a) The amount of money that a salesperson makes varies directly as the total amount of sales made. If the salesperson receives $7,500 for selling a hous for$120,000, how much will he or she make if he or she sells a house for $150,000? b) If y varies inversely as x^2, and y = 2 when x = 4, what is the constant of variation? I'm so confused with these problems. Please explain this to me as best as you can. Thanks! 2. i think you meant to say: "The amount of money that a salesperson makes varies directly as the total amount of money made from sales" otherwise the question makes no sense, since you did not tell us how many sales were made, you just told us the value of a single sale. so i will assume the question is to be done as i described above. Now, we say two numbers x and y vary directly or are directly proportional if there is a constant k, such that: x = k*y we say two numbers x and y vary indirectly, or inversly or are inversly proportional if there is a constant k, such that: x = k*(1/y) = k/y k is called the constant of variation or the constant of proportionality Originally Posted by poeticprincess a) The amount of money that a salesperson makes varies directly as the total amount of sales made. If the salesperson receives$7,500 for selling a hous for $120,000, how much will he or she make if he or she sells a house for$150,000?
let x be the amount of money the salesperson makes
let y be the total amount of money made on a sale, then we have

x = k*y

when x = 7500, y = 120000, so
7500 = 120000k
=> k = 7500/120000 = 1/16
so our constant of proportionality is 1/16

how much will he or she make if he or she sells a house for $150,000? well, we simply need to find x when y = 150000 now x = (1/16)y => x = (1/16)(150000) => x = 9375 so the salesperson makes$9375

b) If y varies inversely as x^2, and y = 2 when x = 4, what is the constant of variation?
since y varies inversly to x^2, we have

y = k/(x^2)
=> k = y(x^2)
when y = 2, x = 4
=> k = 2(4^2)
=> k = 32

3. Thankies Jhevon!