Yards, area, squaring: perimeter set up around crime scene that spans 3 city blocks

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Hi. I got the following question:

A perimeter is set up around a crime scene that spans 3 city blocks in each direction. Each city block is 20 yards wide. What is the total area covered by the perimeter?

To solve this, I calculate the area of one block as 20*20 = 400 yards. Then I took 3 city blocks west, 3 east, 3 north, and 3 south. So 3*4=12.

To get the total area, I have 400*12 = 4800 yards. But this is wrong. What am I doing wrong here?

Thanks!
 
Hi. I got the following question:

A perimeter is set up around a crime scene that spans 3 city blocks in each direction. Each city block is 20 yards wide. What is the total area covered by the perimeter?

To solve this, I calculate the area of one block as 20*20 = 400 sq. yards. Then I took 3 city blocks west, 3 east, 3 north, and 3 south. So 3*4=12.

To get the total area, I have 400*12 = 4800 yards. But this is wrong. What am I doing wrong here?

Thanks!
If the crime scene is

3 city blocks in each direction,

then - within the crime scene you can set (3 *3 =) 9 city blocks.

So the area would be:

9 * (20 * 20) = 3600 sq.yds.
 
Hi. I got the following question:

A perimeter is set up around a crime scene that spans 3 city blocks in each direction. Each city block is 20 yards wide. What is the total area covered by the perimeter?

To solve this, I calculate the area of one block as 20*20 = 400 yards. Then I took 3 city blocks west, 3 east, 3 north, and 3 south. So 3*4=12.

To get the total area, I have 400*12 = 4800 yards. But this is wrong. What am I doing wrong here?

Thanks!
20*20 \(\displaystyle \neq\) 400 yards. You know that 20*20=400 so why write 20*20 = 400 yards. If you wrote it correctly you might have gotten that 20yds*20yds = 400 sq yds, since yds*yds = sq yds.
To see clearly why it is sq yds watch this 1st video below.
You should view this video for area https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTZMjUZPA_4&index=12&list=PLtmopxjCQWixC0DvQqrROOLqKE0zLAmyc
Please view this video for perimeter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcQfSA-xM5M&list=PLtmopxjCQWixC0DvQqrROOLqKE0zLAmyc&index=11
 
Last edited:
Hi. I got the following question:

A perimeter is set up around a crime scene that spans 3 city blocks in each direction. Each city block is 20 yards wide. What is the total area covered by the perimeter?

To solve this, I calculate the area of one block as 20*20 = 400 yards. Then I took 3 city blocks west, 3 east, 3 north, and 3 south. So 3*4=12.

To get the total area, I have 400*12 = 4800 yards. But this is wrong. What am I doing wrong here?

Thanks!

Your misunderstanding involves the meaning of "a crime scene that spans 3 city blocks in each direction". This could be considered ambiguous, but the usual meaning would be that they are marking off a rectangle that is 3 blocks wide and 3 blocks high. You seem to be imagining it perhaps as a cross, with arms sticking out 3 blocks in each direction. This just isn't how it would be done.

As someone else pointed out, you are using "yards" where you should say square yards, but your calculation of the area of one block is otherwise correct. You just have the wrong number of blocks. Or, if you do it as I described, you can find the width and height of the rectangle and find the area of the whole directly.
 
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