A real 3cm bug is drawn to be 10cm in a picture. What scale factor was used (write as mixed #)?

3 answers

To determine the scale factor used when drawing a bug that is 3 cm in reality but is represented as 10 cm in a picture, you can use the following formula:

\[ \text{Scale factor} = \frac{\text{Size in picture}}{\text{Actual size}} = \frac{10 \text{ cm}}{3 \text{ cm}}
\]

Calculating this gives:

\[ \text{Scale factor} = \frac{10}{3} \approx 3.33 \]

To express \( \frac{10}{3} \) as a mixed number:

  1. Divide 10 by 3, which gives 3 with a remainder of 1.
  2. So, \( \frac{10}{3} = 3 \frac{1}{3} \).

Thus, the scale factor used is \( 3 \frac{1}{3} \).

3 1/3?

Yes, the scale factor used is \(3 \frac{1}{3}\) as a mixed number.

To clarify:

  1. Calculate the Scale Factor: \[ \text{Scale factor} = \frac{10 \text{ cm}}{3 \text{ cm}} = \frac{10}{3} \]

  2. Convert to Mixed Number:

    • Divide 10 by 3, which equals 3 with a remainder of 1.
    • This gives us \(3\) whole parts and a fraction of \(\frac{1}{3}\) (the remainder divided by the divisor).

Thus, \( \frac{10}{3} \) can be expressed as the mixed number \( 3 \frac{1}{3} \).

So, the scale factor is indeed \(3 \frac{1}{3}\).