California Real Estate Practice Exam

A section of land is to be enclosed with a double strand of wire. If a rod equals one pound of wire, how many pounds of wire will be required?

1. 1,280

2. 1,920

3. 2,560

4. 640

The correct answer is: 1,280

To determine how many pounds of wire are needed to enclose a section of land with a double strand, it's essential to first grasp the total length of wire required for a single strand and then account for the double strand. A section of land typically refers to a plot of land that is one square mile, which measures 640 acres. The perimeter of a square mile can be calculated by finding the length of each side. A square mile is 5,280 feet on each side, so the total perimeter is calculated as follows: 4 sides x 5,280 feet = 21,120 feet Since wire is needed for a double strand, you would need to double this perimeter length, resulting in: 21,120 feet x 2 = 42,240 feet Next, since each rod of wire equals one pound, we need to convert the total feet of wire needed into pounds. If one rod of wire is 1 pound, and if we consider that one rod of wire is equivalent to 100 feet (common in fencing calculations), you can divide the total length of wire by the length of one rod to find the total weight in pounds: 42,240 feet ÷ 100 feet per rod = 422.4