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Certificate in Science and Technology

Assignment 2 Question Booklet
Semester 1, 2015
PAPER DESCRIPTION: Foundation Problem Solving
PAPER CODE:

404504

Overview
This assignment will be undertaken in groups of 3-4. Time should be made available over the period
between weeks 8 and 10 of the AUT Calendar to complete this assignment.
The assignment will be due at the sessions of week 11 (with your presentation).
This assignment is worth 20% of your course.
There are three questions in this question booklet. The tasks are to be worked on in groups but written
up individually by each student in their answer booklet.
Question 1 and 2 are worth 25 marks each and question 3 is worth 50 marks for a total of 100 marks.
YOUR GROUP NUMBER

YOUR DETAIL
ID

NAME

CONTACT DETAILS

OTHER GROUP MEMBER DETAIL

ID
NAME

CONTACT DETAILS

PROBLEM NUMBER YOU ARE SOLVING IN QUESTION 3?

Question 1 [25 marks]: Lisa has an online jewelry shop where she sells earrings and necklaces. She
sells earrings for $30 and necklaces for $40. It takes 30 minutes to make a pair of earrings and 1 hour to
make a necklace, and, since Lisa is a math tutor, she only has 10 hours a week to make jewelry. In
addition, she only has enough materials to make 15 total jewelry items per week. She makes a profit of
$15 on each pair of earrings and $20 on each necklace. How many pairs of earrings and necklaces should
Lisa make each week in order to maximize her profit, assuming she sells all her jewelry?
To answer the question, you must:
1. Write the objective function.
2. Write the problem constraints and the nonnegative constraints.
3. Graph the feasible region. Find the corner points.
4. Test the corner points in the objective function to find the maximum profit.
Question 2 [25 marks]:
Bountiful Boats has to produce at least 5000 cabin cruisers and 12,000
pontoons each year; but they may not build more than 30,000 jet skis in a year. The company has two
factories: one in Michigan, and one in Wisconsin; each factory is open for a maximum of 240 days per
year. The Michigan factory makes 20 cabin cruisers, 40 pontoons, and 60 jet skis per day. The Wisconsin
factory makes 10 cruisers, 30 pontoons, and 50 jet skis per day. The cost to run the Michigan factory per
day is $960,000; the cost to run the Wisconsin factory per day is $750,000. How many days of the year
should each factory run in order to meet the boat production, yet do so at a minimum cost?
To answer the question, you must:
1. Write the objective function.
2. Write the problem constraints and the nonnegative constraints.
3. Graph the feasible region. Find the corner points.
4. Test the corner points in the objective function to find the minimum cost.
Question 3 [50 marks]:

Solving one of New Zealands biggest problems.

In 2014, while the politicians scrap over election-year policies Nikki Macdonald asks prominent and
ordinary Kiwis about their vision of New Zealands biggest issues in their opinions
(http://www.stuff.co.nz). There are 16 problems which are listed below.
Use Problem Solving techniques that you have learnt to solve one of these problems, which must include
the following steps:
1.
Understanding the problem. (Recognizing what is asked for.)
2.
Devising a plan. (Responding to what is asked for.)
3.
Evaluating the chosen plan. (Checking, do you anticipate any problems?)
Ensure that every member of the group agrees with the solution(s).
You are required to present your solutions in front of the class during week 11 sessions. You need to
create 7-10 slides using Microsoft PowerPoint. Each group is given 10 minutes for presentation and 2
minutes for answering questions. All group members must talk and your presentation must contain at least
one diagram.
Which problem are you solving?
Assume there are 3 people in your group, whose student IDs are ID1, ID2, ID3.
Go to www.google.co.nz and enter (ID1+ID2+ID3)%16+1,
for example: (123456+234567+345678)%16+1 it will return number 6.
In this case, your group is required to solve problem 6.

New Zealand's biggest issues

Problem 1 by Raewyn Habergham, Putaruru
I am concerned at the way the present generations perceive it as their right to produce children
BUT not to take responsibility for their care and nurture; it is everybody elses responsibility the
Governments especially.
I come from a large family but my parents were not given any government handouts, they accepted
that their children were their responsibility and worked hard to provide for us.
I spent 40 years in England where I worked in a school on a council estate in West Yorkshire.
Here I experienced first-hand the consequences of handing out benefits girls coming back 12 14 years later with their children, aged 3 to register them for pre-school. They were better off than
I was as a teacher and widow. No sense of responsibility for the consequences of their drunken
actions.
So if the bureaucrats/politicians are hell bent on giving away yet more taxpayers money to try to
eradicate poverty amongst children, then the best course of action would be food and clothing
vouchers along with a mandate that they have to attend good parenting classes run by people who
have a wide and lengthy of experience of rearing children, (not someone with letters behind their
name). Perhaps then we might start making some inroads into so called poverty.
Problem 2 by Hal Josephson, program chair for The Project: Digital Disruption conference
New Zealands economy needs to migrate from exporting containers of stuff to exporting
innovation. If, over the next decade, New Zealand entrepreneurs focus on commercialising our IP,
(intellectual property), we will (re)position New Zealand as a globally competitive 21st Century
economy. And this shift will create more jobs, enable more prosperity and grow the collective
wealth of the nation.
We have taken small steps in this direction but much more needs to be done. We must track global
market trends and assess the appetite for new products/services across multiple foreign market
sectors. We must build relationships with savvy partners in key markets to help distribute and/or
successfully license our great ideas.
Problem 3 by Margaret Hall, Christian broadcaster, grandmother of 10
The biggest issue is the disintegration of the family. Strong families are the foundation of strong
communities; strong communities make for a strong nation. And traditional marriage is proven to
produce the best outcomes for children.
Liberal laws have eroded the honourable status of traditional marriage, reducing it to one of a
confusing variety of relationships, including same-sex marriage, while easy divorce has produced
broken homes, with thousands of insecure and potentially rebellious children.
Also insecure, and at risk of abuse, are the children of women with multiple partners who each
take their pleasure then abandon the hapless mother and offspring. Further consequences of
sexual permissiveness are teenage pregnancies, STDs, abortions and even suicides.
The only real remedy is a return to the Christian values of earlier generations, when marriage
was a lifelong commitment and parents raised their children with love and discipline to become
responsible citizens.

Problem 4 by Dr Gloria Hettige, wife, mother and businesswoman, Wellington

The biggest issue is a debt-ridden culture and the growing gap between the poor and the rich. Has
capitalism gone wrong?
I came to New Zealand in 1978 to pursue postgraduate studies. At that time, the culture was do it
yourself, work, save and invest. Borrowing was not heard off. In the past 30 years, society has
become affluent and with it came the rising individual debt levels.
To change the mind-set buy now and pay later, we should be teaching our very young the
importance of savings and investments and building bridges between the poor and rich through
social entrepreneurship.
Problem 5 by Carl Reller, Carterton
We think of ourselves, family and friends as the centre of the universe and reference point through
which everything else is measured. However, we only exist because the world is hospitable,
providing shelter, food, water and air; that is, the environment. Look around where people thrive
and youll find natural resources in abundance. Gaze upon failed nation states and youll see
severe shortages.
We New Zealanders thrive not because of our innate knowledge, skills or entrepreneurialism. We
thrive because our environment is gifted and we drink deeply from a well spring of bounty.
As we harvest more trees, catch more fish, water more pastures and build more homes we must
remember: we thrive with permission of a forgiving and productive environment. Without that
wed be as hospitable as one of our sub-Antarctic Islands or a sinking atoll.
Problem 6 by Garrick Batten, semi-retired agriculturalist, Brightwater
The biggest issue has to be the unbalanced treatment of rural New Zealand in recent years. The
current classic example is the so-called ultrafast broadband initiative that has rural spending at
only one-fifth of the urban spend, to deliver a 5mbs entry level service of 15 years ago and five
per cent of urban speed level. And it will reach only 86 per cent of rural New Zealand.
Provision of UFB service to rural New Zealand at similar levels, coverage and timing to urban
service would enable a better spread of population, regional development, capitalise on existing
rural social and practical resources and reduce the rat nest problems of cities like Auckland and
the constant financial drain on taxpayers for their infrastructure that is a further rural roading
penalty.
Problem 7 by Cynthia Christie, retired secretary and freelance writer, Waikanae
The biggest issue is that we are wasting our greatest resource our children. The sad fact is that a
large number of families do not seem to be managing their lives. No government, school or other
organisation can attend to childrens daily needs. We have good schools and great and generous
teachers but they do not have time to attend to a childs health and well-being.
We have some very bright people who are capable of doing great things and some do, we also
have too many young men and women in prison. Improved housing, better life skills such as
health, home economics and family planning are needed for at risk families. We have a great little
country with many people and things to be proud of but without an even distribution of wealth and
well-being our country will not flourish.

Problem 8 by Ian Spellerberg, Lincoln University emeritus professor of nature conservation

The biggest issue is the increasing unsustainable and inequitable use of nature and the
environment.
The issues include human-induced climate change, wholesale land-use change to dairying,
pollution of waterways, mining fossil fuels, unsustainable transport policies, environmentally
unfriendly building designs, and insufficient resources for conservation of our indigenous biota.
There needs to be cross-party environmental sustainability forums and a Ministry for
Sustainability. Sustainability should be a compulsory subject at all levels of education. Gardening
should be taught in all schools. All new buildings including houses should be built to the highest
environmental or green standards.
Problem 9 by Michael Barnett, retired civil engineer, thinker, Wellington
The biggest issue is the growing divide between the haves and the have-nots and the
concentration of the nations wealth in the hands of a wealthy few, which manifests in a
disillusioned middle class and a despairing group of struggling poor.
New Zealand desperately needs visionary political leadership that recognises that the free market
model for managing the economy has its limitations.
I suggest the following: Implement a financial transaction tax with a focus on speculative
currency transactions, tax all banking transactions, a flat rate of income tax and the phasing out
of GST.
Adopt a Universal Basic Income for all New Zealand citizens including children to replace the
current ad hoc delivery of social welfare.
Problem 10 by John Williams, Former CEO of Production Engineering Company, ONZM
New Zealand must urgently increase its innovative, high-tech, cloud-based exports by establishing
an overarching enterprise which will ensure New Zealand becomes the world leader in the supply
of cloud-based products, services and training for Small and Medium Enterprises. (SMEs)
Rod Drurys Xero leads the world in cloud-based accounting software for SMEs. Xero employs
highly innovative, quick on their feet New Zealanders, and that is why Xero leaves far behind
the worlds traditional accounting leaders like Intuit, Sage and MYOB.
The proposed overarching enterprise would ensure innovative New Zealand companies like
GeoOp, Vend, Unleashed and many, many others, would have access to world-class marketing
and customer support for their products and services and New Zealands weightless exports
would increase dramatically.
Problem 11 by Richard Ryan, retired naval officer and ex Director of the NZ Commission for the
Future, Havelock North
An ode to the Land of the Long Lost Opportunity
Where should NZ go? We should turn round and head off in the opposite direction - towards
utopia!
Stop being Chinas dairy before they realise that rice and soy that they produce is healthier.

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Stop harvesting pulp and rewood and plant Kauris and other value-added natives.
Go over entirely to organic production and reinvest in the wool industry.
Reform the monetary system, taking back the printing of money from the banks.
Declare ourselves an armed neutral state and withdraw from unhealthy alliances.
Use complimentary therapy in place of transnational medicine where feasible.
Move to energy self-sufficiency and alternative home grown fuels.
Favour import substitution where realistic and subsidise further advances in carbon bre vehicles
(cars, aircraft, airships and ships.)
Initiate and help others to run a South Pacic and Antarctic nuclear free zone.
Replace MMP with STV and use electronic referenda for major decisions.
In other words exchange our unequal, representational democracy with a new and world beating
PARTICIPATORY ANTICIPATORY democracy!
Problem 12 by Craig Brown, retired builder, Hastings
New Zealand would take a huge leap forward if our national and local governments stopped
treating the working population as a resource to be mined for every last dollar. They have no
interest in cutting costs to benefit the public (that would reduce taxes) cost cutting is only to
bolster government coffers.
Every step of our lives, there is a cost imposed by central or local government. Often ludicrous,
arbitrary charges (laws, regulations, etc) are imposed as revenue gathering. Why is there no
attempt to look after the owners of NZ?. Because those in power need ever more revenue to stay
in power and justify the supposed rewards of voting for us.
Cut back the nanny state and excessive rules, regulations and charges. Then we might individually
and collectively be able to then save for our future.
Problem 13 by David Smith, GP (views are personal)
The biggest issue facing New Zealand is the everyday health of everyday people. The service
handling this, your GP and health centre staff, is called primary care. If primary care is rubbish,
hospitals fill up and the system collapses.
Being under enormous pressure, most GP practices operate a revolving door one patient per
slot, one condition, and one payment. Come again next week.
Now that the secrets of long life are being unravelled (blood pressure, cholesterol, sugar, smoking,
exercise, diet etc.) the revolving door needs replacing with a windows of opportunity model. That
means a comprehensive consultation 20 minutes long, detailed current and archived medical
records, prompt treatment of minor conditions (same day if possible), the creation of a health care
plan, family group awareness, occupational awareness, leisure activity awareness, a computerised
recall system, ready access to specialist expertise for minor conditions (immediate advice clinics),
electronic referrals and the complete raft of modern IT from internet access to printed
information.
Once primary care gets its act together, the demands on hospitals will also fall.
The programme needs to be personalised, family orientated, and based on continuing care that is
free. Insurance or subscription schemes, rather than automatic payments, would be needed to

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embrace high needs patients and their dependents. This may not be popular, but it is the only road
to economic recovery.
Such a programme would take about 3 years of hard work in most practices. It is achievable, has
been done, and could be done throughout New Zealand.
Problem 14 by Margaret Willard, City Councillor, Wainuiomata
New Zealands future lies in the value we place on our children. They will shape the future, and
we need to ensure their input is constructive rather than costly through the health, justice, police
and welfare systems.
We must aim for every child being a wanted child. This needs to start immediately through the
education system, where schools with foresight have already introduced programmes like Roots of
Empathy and the experience of caring for a vulnerable life through inanimate objects. The rights
of a prospective child should take precedence over the rights of women to procreate. We should
value the role of parenting as much as any career.
For our most vulnerable and for our future, taxing of the most wealthy should be raised and large
tax-avoiding companies made to pay to ensure every child is loved, warm, well cared for and will
receive an appropriate education.
Problem 15 by Peter Watt, retired editor, Havelock North.
The biggest issue facing New Zealand is its ridiculously low population given the countrys size
and its bountiful natural resources. We need to boost our population by an additional 3 million
over the next 10 years.
New Zealands large economic potential will be held back because there simply are not enough
people in the labour force, right across the spectrum of skill requirements.
Already, the dairying juggernaut is reporting a lack of skilled labour, let alone the additional
labour requirements needed if we are to substantially boost our food commodity exports with
value-added processed foods, as Denmark, the Netherlands and Ireland have done in recent
years.
So we need a bold and imaginative immigration policy which invites people with our required
skill sets, from countries renowned for their hard work, entrepreneurship, innovation, respect for
the law and sound business practices.

Problem 16 by Ernest A Norris, retired business adviser, Feilding

The biggest issue facing New Zealand is that we lack a business mentality intent on making a
profit. Government and politicians have got to pull the country together so that we all work as a
profit making company. We cannot go on living on borrowed money. All the products and services
we can provide have to be aimed at the rest of the world, because that is where our market is. To
work with them we need the very best communications that money can provide.
And whilst we tidy up New Zealand, get rid of separate racist claims for land and money etc. We
are one people and everyone should be equal under the law. We have all got to work together as a
single team with the best possible leadership at the top.