A Tale of Two Houses by Bowman and Tande

Part III—I Remember Algebra (Don’t I?)

As you look at all of your equations, you think back to algebra class and remember how one equation with many variables could be reduced to an equation with only two variables by holding everything else constant.

For example, the equation: Y = X Z2 can become

Y = a X (when Z is held constant)

or

Y = b Z2 (when X is held constant).

You figure you can do the same thing in reverse and combine the four equations into one equation that describes how all those variables are interrelated.

Write a single equation that defines how Q varies with x, A, ΔT, and k.

Copyright © 1999–2010 by the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science.  Please see our usage guidelines, which outline our policy concerning permissible reproduction of this work.