how long should the ribbon be

eddy2017

eddy2017

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Oct 27, 2017
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Hi, happy new year to my dear friends and teachers:
The following problem should be easy. I just need to confirm if my solution is right. Let's see how well I do.
Mr Thomas bought a blanket shaped like a square that measures 3 ft on each side. she wants to put put a ribbon at the edge. How long should the ribbon be?.

My try was this;
it is said that the blanket is in the shape of a square. If it measures 3 ft on each side and there are 4 equal sides to a square,
then the ribbon should be 12 ft long.
Is this right?.
Thanks,
eddy
 
Last edited:
eddy2017 said:
Hi, happy new year to my dear friends and teachers:
The following problem should be easy. I just need to confirm if my solution is right. Let's see how well I do.
Mr Thomas bought a blanket shaped like a square that measures 3 ft on each side. she wants to put put a ribbon at the edge. How long should the ribbon be?.

My try was this;
it is said that the blanket is in the shape of a square. If it measures 3 ft on each side and there are 4 sides to a square
then the ribbon should be 12 ft long.
Is this right?.
Thanks,
eddy
Click to expand...
Yesssssss.......

If I were to answer this question - I would have added "at least" to it, like:

"......the ribbon should be at least 12 ft. long"
 
I actually like Subhotosh but this is the worst answer I feel that he ever gave. There are 4 edges and each of them are 4 ft long. How on earth can the ribbon be on one edge for 12 feet?
 
Jomo said:
I actually like Subhotosh but this is the worst answer I feel that he ever gave. There are 4 edges and each of them are 4 ft long. How on earth can the ribbon be on one edge for 12 feet?
Click to expand...

Take another look. The edges are 3 feet long.
 
Romsek said:
Take another look. The edges are 3 feet long.
Click to expand...
OK, fine you got me there. But the problem never said around all 4 edges. If I gave you a square and asked you to paint an edge green would you paint all 4 edges green?
 
Jomo said:
OK, fine you got me there. But the problem never said around all 4 edges. If I gave you a square and asked you to paint an edge green would you paint all 4 edges green?
Click to expand...
When referring to an edge in a square we mean one of the 4 segments. Whereas "the edge of a blanket" may refer to the whole boundary. If you tell your kid "Don't come close to the edge of the crater!" you probably mean the whole perimeter even if the crater is square shaped.
 
Jomo said:
OK, fine you got me there. But the problem never said around all 4 edges. If I gave you a square and asked you to paint an edge green would you paint all 4 edges green?
Click to expand...

if you said paint a green stripe on "an edge", I would ask you which edge.

if you said paint a green stripe "at the edge" I would put a stripe around the entire perimeter.
 
Who cares what mathematicians call it? The question is about what the problem means, in blanket-maker's terms, or just everyday language. I did a search, and they use "edge" to mean any of "one edge" or "two ends" or "perimeter". Often it's "around the edge".

And as for "at least", my wife pointed this out: https://www.craftsy.com/post/how-to-bind-quilts/#

Measure the perimeter of your quilt by adding the length and width of your quilt and multiplying that by 2. Then add an extra 10″ to deal with seams and corners. For example, my quilt measures 56″ x 70″.​

Of course, that reminds us that these questions are never really realistic! They tend to blend together mathematical idealism with everyday language to make a real mess if you try to analyze it too tightly. So settle down, guys!
 
One important fact that is missing is the width of the ribbon. We can put 3 feet of ribbon along two sides of the blanket but then, for the other two sides we need 3 feet minus twice the width of the ribbon.
 
HallsofIvy said:
One important fact that is missing is the width of the ribbon. We can put 3 feet of ribbon along two sides of the blanket but then, for the other two sides we need 3 feet minus twice the width of the ribbon.
Click to expand...
I don't think so. It depends on how you sew it on, I suppose, but all the examples I saw, including the link I provided, make mitered corners, and consequently, apart from practical issues of cutting and joining ends, use a binding exactly the length of the perimeter.

In any case, of course, the problem is about imagined ideal sewing, ignoring realities, so of course they're just looking for the perimeter.
 
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