Measurement (time): Monster Lily
The Problem
In a remote corner of the Pantanal (the world’s largest wetland habitat), a giant water lily has one particularly large leaf that had a diameter of 2 m and 50 cm (see picture opposite).
Using the useful fact below, can you work out how many days it took for the leaf to reach this monster size?
Useful fact
- Giant water lily leaves grow at a rate of around 20 cm every 24 hours.
Did you know?
In the wild, giant water lilies are pollinated by a beetle. The beetle is attracted to its fragrant, white flowers that open at night.
Visualising the Problem and Getting Started
A girl called Lily used just one fact from the list below to work out how long it took the water lily to grow. How do you think she might have worked it out?
1) There are 10 mm in 1 cm.
2) There are 24 hours in a day.
3) There are 7 days in a week.
4) There are 100 cm in 1 m.