Pin Prick
The number of milliseconds between the time you are pricked with a pin and the time you say, "Ouch!" varies linearly with number of centimeters of nerve fiber between your brain and the place where you are pricked. (A millisecond is 1/1000 of a second.) Dr. Holler pricks Leslie Morley's finger and toe, and measures times of 15.2 and 22.9 milliseconds, respectively, between the prick and the ouch. Leslie's finger is 100 cm from the brain, and her toe is 170 cm from the brain.
- Write a particular equation expressing time in terms of distance.
- How long would it take Leslie to say, "Ouch!" if pricked in the neck-10 cm from the brain?
- What does the reaction time intercept equal, and what does it represent in the real world?
- Plot the graph of the function.
The units of the slope are milliseconds per centimeter. How fast do impulses travel in Leslie's nerve fibers? Give your answer in centimeters per second.