Two announcers are used to read names at the semiannual commencement exercises held at a regional university in America's heartland. All students have their names read then walk briskly to the president who shakes their hand and offers them an empty diploma cover until such time that all financial obligations to the university have been met. The president greets about 640 students in an eight-hour day. The diploma covers come in boxes of 24 and it takes one hour to carry one from the receiving dock to the field house where the ceremony is held. The president likes to keep things moving, so he has requested a 50% safety factor. How many containers are needed?
A)two
B)three
C)four
D)five

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The president greets 640 students, and with a 50% safety factor, the total covers needed are 640 * 1.5 = 960. Each box contains 24 covers, so 960 / 24 = 40 boxes are needed. Since it takes one hour to carry one box, and the ceremony is 8 hours long, only 8 boxes can be carried to the ceremony. To meet the requirement with a 50% safety factor, more containers are needed to transport the boxes. Since each container can carry the boxes needed for the ceremony in one trip, and 40 boxes are needed in total, dividing the total boxes by the capacity of each trip (assuming optimal conditions) would suggest needing more than one container. However, the question does not specify the capacity of each container for carrying boxes, leading to an assumption that each container can carry all required boxes in one trip. The correct answer, based on the information provided, would be to ensure all 40 boxes are available, implying multiple trips or containers might be needed, but the exact number cannot be determined from the given information. The answer choice D (five) is selected based on the misunderstanding of the question's requirements, as the question does not provide enough information to accurately determine the number of containers needed based on the capacity of each container or the total trips possible within the time constraint.

Two Announcers Are Used to Read Names at the Semiannual