Question

Wesley volunteers at a local hospital because he is interested in a career
in health care. One day, he takes the elevator from the first floor up to the
sixth floor to see his supervising nurse. His list of tasks for that day sends
him down to the second floor to work in the gift shop, up to the fourth
floor to visit with patients, and down to the first floor to greet visitors
and patients. What is the total change in floors for Wesley that day?

Answer 1

To find the total change in floors for Wesley, we can calculate the sum of the absolute differences between the floors he goes up and the floors he goes down.

Wesley goes up from the first floor to the sixth floor, which is a change of +5 floors.
Then he goes down from the sixth floor to the second floor, which is a change of -4 floors.
After that, he goes up from the second floor to the fourth floor, which is a change of +2 floors.
Finally, he goes down from the fourth floor to the first floor, which is a change of -3 floors.

Adding up the changes in floors: +5 floors - 4 floors + 2 floors - 3 floors = 0 floors.

So, the total change in floors for Wesley that day is 0 floors. He ends up on the same floor where he started.