Ratio, proportion and rates of change worksheet — GCSE Higher

1.A 750 g box of cereal costs £2.70. A 500 g box of the same cereal costs £1.95. Work out which box is better value, and its cost per 100 g.

2.A statue exerts a downward force of 68.4 N on its base, which has an area of 2.85 m². Work out the pressure that the statue exerts on its base, in N/m².

3.y is directly proportional to √x. When x = 4, y = 8. Construct the equation connecting x and y, then work out the value of y when x = 9.

4.Two mathematically similar logos are printed on a poster. They have areas 20 cm² and 45 cm². Nadia says that the length scale factor from the smaller logo to the larger logo is 45 ÷ 20 = 2.25. Give a reason why Nadia is incorrect, and work out the correct length scale factor.

5.A factory machine produces bottles at a constant rate. In 45 minutes it produces 810 bottles. The factory needs 2,160 bottles for an order. Working at the same rate, work out how many minutes it will take to produce the order.

6.After a 20% discount, a jacket costs £48. Work out the original price of the jacket.

7.Priya invests £750 in a savings account that pays simple interest. After 3 years, the account contains £840. Work out the annual rate of simple interest.

8.A patient is given a dose of 200 mg of a drug. Each hour, 30% of the drug remaining in the bloodstream is eliminated, and then a further dose of 50 mg is given. Using the recurrence D_{n+1} = 0.7D_n + 50, with D_0 = 200, work out the amount of drug in the bloodstream after 2 hours.

9.y is directly proportional to x. When x = 4, y = 10. Work out the value of y when x = 6.

10.Given that 1 mile ≈ 1.6 km, work out a speed of 55 mph in km/h.

11.A spring's extension is directly proportional to the force applied to it. A force of 5 N produces an extension of 12 mm. Work out the extension produced by a force of 20 N.

12.A coach journey of 240 km takes 3 hours. For this fixed distance the average speed needed is inversely proportional to the time taken. Work out the average speed needed to complete the same journey in 2 hours.

13.The concentration of a pollutant in a lake, in arbitrary units, follows the recurrence C_{n+1} = 0.75C_n + 40, with C_0 = 500: each week, 25% of the pollutant breaks down naturally, and then a further 40 units enter the lake from run-off. An ecologist classifies the lake as safe once C_n first drops below 300. Find the first whole number of weeks after which the lake is safe.

14.Two mathematically similar picture frames have perimeters 30 cm and 45 cm. The area of the smaller frame is 40 cm². Work out the area of the larger frame.

15.The value of a delivery van, in £, is plotted against its age, in years, since it was bought. At age 2 years, the gradient of the tangent to the graph is −950. What does this tell you about the van at age 2 years?