Prerequisites

This problem can be introduced early in a course in differential calculus, although students with no physics background may need an introduction to projectile motion.


Highly analytic students may very quickly determine the function to be optimized, while other students can successfully approach the problem by trial and error, only eventually formulating the problem analytically. These students will nevertheless have succeeded in determining a multi-step solution process, and will also have developed their intuition and reasoning skills.


This problem can be introduced before the derivative, allowing students to explore their understanding of limits in a practical setting.