A thief steals a van at 3:00 a.m. and drives it at a speed of 57 km/h. The thief is discovered at 4:00 a.m. and the owner starts the chase with another van at a speed of 76 km/h. At what time will he catch the thief?
This questions was previously asked in
Combined Graduate level Examination 2023 Tier I
1. 7:30 a.m.
Incorrect Answer7:00 p.m.
Incorrect Answer6:00 a.m.
Incorrect AnswerExplanation:
To determine when the van's owner will catch up to the thief:
- Distance covered by thief in 1 hour:
- Speed = 57 km/h
- Time = 1 hour
- Distance = 57 km × 1 hour = 57 km
- Relative speed difference:
- Owner's speed = 76 km/h
- Thief's speed = 57 km/h
- Relative speed = 76 km/h - 57 km/h = 19 km/h
- Time taken to close the 57 km gap:
- Time = Distance / Relative speed
- Time = 57 km / 19 km/h = 3 hours
- Time of catching up:
- Chase started at 4:00 a.m.
- Add 3 hours: 4:00 a.m. + 3 hours = 7:00 a.m.
- Options & Explanation:
- Option 1: 7:30 a.m.
- After calculating, it's clear that 7:30 a.m. is too late.
- Option 2: 7:00 p.m.
- This option doesn’t make sense because it's 12 hours too late.
- Option 3: 7:00 a.m.
- Matches the calculated time perfectly.
- Option 4: 6:00 a.m.
- Incorrect, as it requires a faster closing speed.
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By: Parvesh Mehta