To find out how many times Porter's heart beats in one minute, we first need to determine how many 1/4 minute intervals are in a full minute. Since there are 4 intervals of 1/4 minute in one minute, we can use this information to calculate the total heart beats per minute.
Porter's heart beats 42 times in 1/4 minute. Therefore, in one minute, his heart beats:
\[ 42 \text{ beats} \times 4 = 168 \text{ beats} \]
So, Porter's heart beats 168 times in a minute.