Question

If the length of the minute hand of the clock in London commonly known as “Big Ben” is 11.25’ from the center of the clock to the tip of the hand, what is the area swept out by the minute hand as it moves 5 minutes of time?
A) 10.55 ft2
B) 28.13 ft2
C) 33.13 ft2
D) 66.27 ft2

Answer 1

First, we should figure out the area of the entire face of the clock because we need that information to solve the problem. The formula for the area of a circle is A=pi*r^2. Since we know that r (radius) is equal to 11.25 feet, we can plug this in for r and solve for A: A=pi*11.25^2 which equals A=397.61 ft^2 rounded to the nearest hundredth. 

Now, to find the area the hand sweeps over in 5 minutes, we should determine how much of the clock the hand sweeps over in 5 minutes. Think about it like this: since 5 minutes goes into 60 minutes 12 times (60/5=12), then 5 minutes is one twelfth of the clock's face. Therefore, we are going to divide the total area by 12 (397.61/12) to get 33.13 ft^2, so the answer is C.

I hope this helps.