A heat engine uses one mole of an ideal monatomic gas as a working substance. The engine can follow either cycle A or cycle B (see the diagram). The ratio of the efficiencies of the cycles is . Find both and .
We received a large number of solutions, not all of them correct, for our October Challenge, Cart Before the Horse. We are pleased to recognize the following contributors:
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Fernando Ferreira (Universidade da Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal)
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Hratch Barsoumian (Haigazian University, Beirut, Lebanon)
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Phil Cahill (Lockheed Martin Corporation, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom)
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Don Easton (Lacombe, Alberta, Canada)
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Ángel García Rivera, student (Escuela Politécnica Superior, University of Seville, Seville, Spain)
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Fredrick P. Gram (Cuyahoga Community College, Cleveland, OH)
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Norge Cruz Hernández (University of Seville, Spain)
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Gerald E. Hite (TAMUG, Galveston, TX)
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Harold Houghton...