DIRECT AND INVERSE VARIATION WORKSHEET and QUIZ review.

Show your work on the back or on a separate sheet of paper.

NAME: _________________________________

DATE: _______________

Find the constant and slope for the following direct variation equations. Then graph.
y 1 / 2 x
1.
2. y 4 x

Identify which situations in numbers 1-9 below can be modeled by direct variation, inverse variation or
neither; write the equation for the first six.
3. Fred earns $6.50 per hour.
4. Edwina earns $450 plus 7.5% commission on sales
5. A car travels 250 miles to Myrtle Beach; the faster it goes, the less time the trip takes.
6. For his flooring business, Joes needs to convert feet to yards.
7. The volume of the water in a swimming pool as it is filed at a rate of 200 gallons per minute.
8. If the area of a rectangle remains constant and the width decreases, then the length increases.
9. The volume of the water in a swimming pool as the water drains at a rate of 200 gallons per minute.
10. You purchase a new SUM; as age increases, the resale price decreases.
Write a direct variation equation that relates to x and y. Assume the y varies directly as x. Then solve.
11. If y = -8 when x = -2, find x when y = 32.
12. If y = 45, when x = 15, find x when y = 15.
13. If y = -4 when x=2, find y when x = -6
14. If y = -9 when x = 3, find y when x = -5
15. The distance traveled varies directly with the time of travel. If the time traveled is 250 meters in 25
seconds, find the distance traveled in 60 seconds.
Write an inverse variation equation that relates and y. Assume that y varies inversely as x. Then solve.
16. If y=4 when x = 8, find y when x=2.
17. If y=-7 when x=3, find y when x = -3
18. If y= -6 when x=-2, find y when x = 4
19. If y = -24 when x = -3, find x when y = -6
20. The cost per person to rent a mountain cabin is inversely proportional to the number of people who
share the rent. If the cost is $36 per person when 5 people share, what is the cost per person when 8
people share?

THE QUIZ WILL ALSO INCLUDE 3 ITEMS WHERE YOU WILL IDENTIFY
GRAPHS AS DIRECT, INVERSE OR NEITHER VARIATION.

If y varies directly as x and z, and y

then find y when x = 2 and z = 3.

= 5 when x = 3 and z = 4,

Translating the formula from English to math, I get:

y = kxz
Plugging in the data point they gave me, and solving for the value of k, I get:

5 = k(3)(4)
5 = 12k
5
/12 = k
Now that I have the value of k, I can plug in the new values, and solve for the new value of y:

y = ( 5/12)xz
y = ( 5/12)(2)(3)
y = ( 5/12)(6)
y = 5/2
Then the answer is: y

= 5/2

Suppose that y is inversely proportional to x, and that y =

0.4when x = 2.5. Find y when x = 4.

Translating, I get the formula:

y = k/x
Plugging in the data point they gave me, I can solve for the value of k:

y = k/x
0.4 = k/(2.5)
(0.4)(2.5) = k = 1
Now that I have found the value of the variation constant, I can plug in the x-value they gave me, and find the
value of y:

y = 1/x
y = 1/4
Then the answer is:

y = 1/4

Most word problems, of course, do not come all neatly arranged like the above examples. Instead, you have to figure out
what values go where.

According to Hooke's Law, the force needed to stretch a spring is proportional to the amount the spring
is stretched. If fifty pounds of force stretches a spring five inches, how much will the spring be stretched
by a force of 120 pounds?

"Is proportional to" means "varies directly with", so the

formula for Hooke's Law is "F = kd", where "F" is the
force and "d" is the distance. (Note that, in physics,
"weight" is a force. These Hooke's Law problems are often
stated in terms of weight, and the weight is the force.)

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First I have to solve for the value of k. They've given me

the data point (d, F) = (5, 50), so I'll plug this in to the
formula:

F = kd
50 = k5
10 = k
Now I know that the formula for this particular spring is
"F = 10d". (Hooke's Law doesn't change, but each spring
is different, so each spring will have its own "k".) Once I
know the formula, I can answer their question: "How much
will the spring be stretched by a force of 120 pounds?"

F = 10d
120 = 10d
12 = d
Note that they did not ask "What is the value of 'd'?". Be sure to answer the question they actually asked. The final
answer is:
The spring will stretch twelve inches.

Kepler's third law of planetary motion states that the square of the time required for a planet to make one
revolution about the sun varies directly as the cube of the average distance of the planet from the sun. If
you assume that Mars is 1.5 times as far from the sun as is the earth, find the approximate length of a
Martian year.
This one is a bit different. The variation relationship is between the square of the time and the cube of the
distance. The formula is: Copyright Elizabeth Stapel 2000-2011 All Rights Reserved

t2 = kd3
If I take "d = 1" to mean "the distance is one AU", an AU being an "astronomical unit" (the distance of earth from
the sun), then the distance for Mars is 1.5 AU. Also, I will take "t = 1" to stand for "one earth year". Then, in terms
of the planet Earth, I get:

(1)2 = k(1)3
1=k
Then the formula, in terms of Earth, is:

t2 = d3
Now I'll plug in the information for Mars (in comparison to earth):

d = 1.5:

t2 = (1.5)3
t = sqrt(3.375)
In other words, the Martian year is approximately the length of
ten months).

1.837 earth years (or just over one year and

The weight of a body varies inversely as the square of its distance from the center of the earth. If the
radius of the earth is 4000 miles, how much would a 200-pound man weight 1000 miles above the surface
of the earth?
Remembering that "weight" is a force, let the weight be designated by " F". The distance of a body from the center
of the earth is "d". Then the formula is the following:

F = k / d2
Plug in the given data point of

(d, F) = (4000, 200) and solve for k:

200 = k / (4000)2
(200)(16,000,000) = k = 3,200,000,000
(Hey; there's nothing that says that

k has to be small!)

Since the distance is always measured from the center of the earth, if the guy is in orbit a thousand miles up, then
his distance is the 4000 miles from the center to the surface plus the1000 miles from the surface to his ship. That
is, d = 5000. Plug this in, and solve for F:

F = (3,200,000,000) / (5000)2
F = 128 Copyright Elizabeth Stapel 2000-2011 All Rights Reserved
Then the guy weighs

128 pounds.

Under certain conditions, the thrust T of a propeller

varies jointly as the fourth power of its diameter d and
the square of the number n of revolutions per
second. Show that, if nis doubled and d is halved, the
thrust T is decreased by 75%.

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Your first instinct is to say, "What the heck?", and your

second is to say, "But they didn't give us any data points!
We've got no numbers!". Here's a tip: when you have no
idea what to do, try playing around with what they gave
you, and see if anything useful happens.
At the very least, I can translate the formula from English
into math:

T = k d4 n2
Now what? Well, whatever the diameter used to be, my
new diameter is now half the old diameter. And whatever the number of revolutions used to be, the new number is
twice that value. So I'll plug in "( 1/2 )d = d / 2" where "d" used to be, and plug in "2n" where "n" used to be, and
see if I can "find" the original "thrust" expression, k d4 n2, within the results:

new T = k( d / 2 )4( 2n )2
= k( d 4 / 16 )( 4n2 )
= k( d 4 )( 1 / 16 )( 4 )(n2 )
= k( d 4n2 )( 4 / 16 )
= ( kd 4n2 )( 1 / 4 ) = ( 1 / 4 )( old T )
In other words, when I make the changes they said to make, my new thrust is one-fourth of the old thrust, which
means that the thrust has been decreased by three-fourths, or 75%.

The number of hours h that it takes m men to assemble x machines varies directly as the number of
machines and inversely as the number of men. If four men can assemble 12machines in four hours, how
many men are needed to assemble 36 machines in eight hours?
First, translate the English into math:

h = kx / m
Plug in the given data point and solve for k:

4 = k ( 12 ) / ( 4 )
16 = 12 k
16
/12 = k = 4/3
Now plug in the new information, and solve for the answer they want:

h = ( 4/3 ) x / m
8 = ( 4/3 )( 36 ) / m
8 = 48 / m
8m = 48
m=6
Remember that they didn't ask for the value of the variable
"They will need six men."

m. I have to answer the question that they did ask:

http://www.purplemath.com/modules/variatn.htm

What is Direct Variation?

When two variables are related in such a way that the ratio of their values always
remains the same, the two variables are said to be in direct variation.
In simpler terms, that means if A is always twice as much as B, then they directly
vary. If a gallon of milk costs $3, and I buy 1 gallon, the total cost is $3. If I buy 10
gallons, the price is $30. In this example the total cost of milk and the number of

gallons purchased are subject to direct variation -- the ratio of the cost to the number of
gallons is always 3.
To be more "geometrical" about it, if y varies directly as x, then the graph of all points
that describe this relationship is a line going through the origin (0, 0) whose slope is
called the constant of variation. That's because each of the variables is a constant
multiple of the other, like in the graph shown below:

Key concepts of direct variation:

1) How do I Recognize Direct Variation in an Equation?

The equation yx

=6yx=6 states that y varies directly as x, since the ratio of y to x (also

written y:x) never changes. The number 6 in the equation yx

constant of variation. The equation yx

=6yx=6 is called the

=6yx=6 can also be written in the equivalent

=6xy=6x. That form shows you that y is always 6 times as much as x.

Similarly, for the equation y x3y=x3, the constant of variation is 1313. The equation
=
form, y

tells us that for any x value, y will always be 1/3 as much.

2) Algebraic Interpretation of Direct Variation

=kxy=kx, multiplying x by some fixed amount also

For an equation of the form y

multiplies y by the SAME FIXED AMOUNT. If we double x, then we also double the

corresponding y value. What does this mean? For example, since the perimeter P of a
square varies directly as the length of one side of a square, we can say that P = 4s,
where the number 4 represents the four sides of a square and s represents the length
of one side. That equation tells us that the perimeter is always four times the length of
a single side (makes sense, right?), but it also tells us that doubling the length of the
sides doubles the perimeter (which will still be four times larger in total).
3) Geometric Interpretation of Direct Variation

=kxy=kx is a special case of linear

equation (y mx by=mx+b) where the y-intercept equals 0. (Note: the
=
+
The equation y

equation y

=mx+by=mx+b is the slope-intercept form where m is the slope and

b is the y-intercept). Anyway, a straight line through the origin (0,0) always represents a
direct variation between y and x. The slope of this line is the constant of variation. In
other words, in the equation y mxy=mx, m is the constant of variation.

Example A:

If y varies directly as x, and y

=8y=8 when x=12x=12, find k and write an equation

that expresses this variation.

Plan of Attack:
Plug the given values into the equation

y=kxy=kx.

Solve for k.
Then replace k with its value in the equation
Step-by-Step:
Start with our standard equation:

y=kxy=kx.

y=kxy=kx

Insert our known values:

8=k128=k12
Divide both sides by 12 to find k: 812 k812=k
=
=k23=k

23

Next: Go back to

y=kxy=kx and replace k with 2323.

Result:

y=23xy=23x
Example B:

If y varies directly as x, and y

=24y=24 when x=16x=16, find y when x=12x=12.

Plan of Attack:
When two quantities vary directly, their ratio is always the same. We'll
create two ratios, set them equal to each other, and then solve for the
missing quantity.
Step-by-Step:
The given numbers form one ratio which we can write as yxyx: 24162416
To find y when x
x=12 we setup another ratio: y12y12

=12

Solve:
By definition, both ratios are equal:

2416=y122416=y12
Multiply each side by 12 to solve for y:

241612=y241612=y
y=3212y=3212
Result:
y = 18 when x = 12
Got a basic understanding of direct variation now? If you still need more help, try
searching our website (at the top of the page) for a more specific question, or browse
our other algebra lessons. Sometimes it helps to have a subject explained by
somebody else (a fresh perspective!) so you may also be interested in another lesson
on direct variation, such as this page that provides examples solving direct variation.
http://www.freemathhelp.com/direct-variation.html