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BFP Fire Officer

Quantitative Reasoning

"Tol! Math skills. Computation ng distance, volume ng tubig, at nozzle pressure. Numbers are your friend sa fire service - from calculating GPM to estimating fire damage!"

1. Basic Arithmetic Operations ➕➖

Tol, foundation ng lahat ng math problems ay ang basic operations. Dapat mabilis ka mag-compute mentally!

Order of Operations (PEMDAS/BODMAS):

Parentheses/Brackets - ( )

Exponents/Orders - powers, roots

Multiplication - ×

Division - ÷

Addition - +

Subtraction - −

Example: 3 + 4 × 2 = ?

Step 1: 4 × 2 = 8 (multiplication first)

Step 2: 3 + 8 = 11

Fractions Operations:

Operation Rule Example
Addition Same denominator, add numerators 1/4 + 2/4 = 3/4
Subtraction Same denominator, subtract numerators 3/5 - 1/5 = 2/5
Multiplication Multiply across 2/3 × 3/4 = 6/12 = 1/2
Division Flip and multiply 2/3 ÷ 1/2 = 2/3 × 2/1 = 4/3

2. Percentage & Ratio Problems 📊

Essential sa fire damage assessment, budget calculations, at statistical reports!

Percentage Formulas:

Finding Percentage:

Percentage = (Part / Whole) × 100

If 30 out of 50 houses burned: (30/50) × 100 = 60%

Finding the Part:

Part = (Percentage × Whole) / 100

What is 25% of P800,000? = (25 × 800,000) / 100 = P200,000

Finding the Whole:

Whole = (Part × 100) / Percentage

If P150,000 is 30% of damage: (150,000 × 100) / 30 = P500,000

Ratio and Proportion:

Direct Proportion:

As one increases, the other increases

More hoses = More water delivery

Inverse Proportion:

As one increases, the other decreases

More workers = Less time to finish

Cross Multiplication Method:

If 5 firefighters can clear a site in 6 hours,

how long for 10 firefighters?

5 × 6 = 10 × x → 30 = 10x → x = 3 hours

3. Fire Service Math Applications 🚒

Real-world math na ginagamit ng BFP personnel!

Water Flow Calculations (GPM - Gallons Per Minute):

Formula: GPM = 29.7 × d² × √P

Where: d = nozzle diameter (inches), P = nozzle pressure (psi)

Example:

Nozzle diameter: 1 inch, Pressure: 100 psi

GPM = 29.7 × 1² × √100 = 29.7 × 1 × 10 = 297 GPM

Friction Loss Calculation:

Formula: FL = C × Q² × L

Where: C = coefficient, Q = flow (hundreds of GPM), L = hose length (100ft sections)

Hose Diameter Coefficient (C)
1.5 inch24
1.75 inch15.5
2.5 inch2
3 inch0.8

Fire Damage Assessment:

Structure Value Estimation:

Total Value = Floor Area × Price per sq.m.

Example: 100 sq.m. × P25,000 = P2,500,000

Percentage Damage:

Damage Cost = Total Value × % Damage

If 40% damaged: P2,500,000 × 0.40 = P1,000,000

4. Distance, Speed & Time Problems 🏃

Critical para sa response time calculations at emergency planning!

Basic Formula Triangle:

Distance

D = S × T

Speed × Time

Speed

S = D / T

Distance ÷ Time

Time

T = D / S

Distance ÷ Speed

Fire Service Applications:

Response Time Problem:

Fire station is 15 km away. Fire truck travels at 60 km/hr.

Response time = 15 ÷ 60 = 0.25 hours = 15 minutes

Coverage Distance Problem:

If maximum response time is 8 minutes at 45 km/hr speed:

Coverage = 45 × (8/60) = 45 × 0.133 = 6 km radius

5. Volume & Area Calculations 📐

Para sa water tank capacity, building floor area, at fire load calculations!

Area Formulas:

Shape Formula Example
Rectangle A = L × W 10m × 8m = 80 sq.m.
Triangle A = ½ × b × h ½ × 6m × 4m = 12 sq.m.
Circle A = π × r² 3.14 × 5² = 78.5 sq.m.
Trapezoid A = ½ × (a+b) × h ½ × (4+6) × 3 = 15 sq.m.

Volume Formulas (Water Tank Capacity):

Rectangular Tank:

V = L × W × H

2m × 1m × 1.5m = 3 cubic meters

= 3,000 liters

Cylindrical Tank:

V = π × r² × h

3.14 × 0.5² × 2 = 1.57 cubic meters

= 1,570 liters

Conversion: 1 cubic meter = 1,000 liters = 264.17 gallons

6. Number Series & Patterns 🔢

Common sa aptitude tests - identify ang pattern para malaman ang next number!

Common Pattern Types:

Arithmetic (Add/Subtract constant):

2, 5, 8, 11, 14 (add 3)

20, 17, 14, 11, 8 (subtract 3)

Geometric (Multiply/Divide constant):

2, 6, 18, 54, 162 (multiply by 3)

256, 128, 64, 32, 16 (divide by 2)

Square Numbers:

1, 4, 9, 16, 25 (1², 2², 3², 4², 5²)

Fibonacci-like:

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 (each = sum of previous two)

Alternating Pattern:

2, 5, 4, 7, 6, 9 (alternates +3, -1)

7. Practice Questions 📋

1. A fire truck travels 24 km in 20 minutes. What is its average speed in km/hr?

A) 48 km/hr B) 60 km/hr C) 72 km/hr D) 80 km/hr

View Answer

Answer: C) 72 km/hr
Speed = Distance / Time = 24 km / (20/60) hr = 24 / 0.333 = 72 km/hr

2. A building worth P5,000,000 sustained 35% fire damage. What is the estimated damage cost?

A) P1,500,000 B) P1,750,000 C) P2,000,000 D) P2,250,000

View Answer

Answer: B) P1,750,000
Damage = P5,000,000 × 0.35 = P1,750,000

3. What is the next number in the series: 3, 6, 12, 24, ___?

A) 36 B) 42 C) 48 D) 30

View Answer

Answer: C) 48
Pattern: Each number is multiplied by 2. 24 × 2 = 48

4. A rectangular water tank is 3m long, 2m wide, and 1.5m deep. How many liters can it hold?

A) 6,000 L B) 7,500 L C) 9,000 L D) 10,500 L

View Answer

Answer: C) 9,000 L
Volume = 3 × 2 × 1.5 = 9 cubic meters = 9,000 liters

5. If 8 firefighters can finish clearing debris in 6 hours, how long will it take 12 firefighters?

A) 3 hours B) 4 hours C) 5 hours D) 9 hours

View Answer

Answer: B) 4 hours
Inverse proportion: 8 × 6 = 12 × x → 48 = 12x → x = 4 hours

8. Exam Strategy Tips 🎯

  • 🔢 Memorize formulas - Distance, percentage, volume are most common
  • ⏱️ Practice mental math - Faster calculations = more time for hard problems
  • 📝 Show your work - Even mentally, track your steps to avoid errors
  • Check your units - Make sure answers use correct units (km, liters, hours)
  • 🧮 Estimate first - Eliminate obviously wrong answers
  • 🔄 Double-check inversions - More workers = less time (inverse), not more

Test Your Knowledge! 🧠

Ready ka na ba? Take the practice quiz for Quantitative Reasoning to reinforce what you just learned.

Start Practice Quiz 📝

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