Joyce wants to go to the zoo with her friend over spring break. You can pay $45 to get into the zoo each time, or join a membership for $50 and then only pay $20 each visit to the zoo. How many times will Joyce need to visit the zoo to justify the expense of the membership fee

Answer 1

To calculate how many times Joyce needs to visit the zoo to justify the expense of the membership fee, we need to find the point at which the cost of visiting the zoo without the membership exceeds the cost of getting the membership.

Cost of visiting the zoo without membership = $45 per visit
Cost of visiting the zoo with membership = $20 per visit (after paying the $50 membership fee)

Let's set up the equation:

$45 x x > $50 + ($20 x x)

Where x is the number of visits Joyce needs to make to justify the membership fee.

Simplifying the equation:

$45x > $50 + $20x

Subtracting $20x from both sides of the equation:

$45x - $20x > $50

Combining like terms:

$25x > $50

Dividing both sides of the equation by $25:

x > 2

Since Joyce cannot make a fraction of a visit, she needs to visit the zoo at least 3 times to justify the expense of the membership fee.