P425/1

PURE
MATHEMATICS
PAPER 1
2025

1
2 2
hours

AGGREY MEMORIAL SCHOOL

Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education
PURE MATHEMATICS
Paper 1
2 hours and 30 minutes

Instructions to candidates:
 Answer (only four) Items in this paper.
 All working must be shown clearly.
 Begin each answer on a fresh page
 Silent non-programmable, scientific calculators and
mathematical tables with a list of formulae may be used.
 State the degree of accuracy at the end of each answer given. If a
calculator or mathematical table is used. Indicate Cal for calculator
and Tab for mathematical tables.
ITEM 1
A team of engineers is working on a rotating antenna system mounted on a

tower. The rotation angle of the antenna, denoted by θ, affects the strength of

signal reception. They found that the signal strength S(θ) is modeled by the

equation:

S(θ) = 3sin 2θ+sin θ cos θ − 3

The antenna rotates within the range of −180 ≤ θ ≤ 180∘

TASKS:
(a) The engineers want to maximize signal reception solve the equation within

the given range of θ, to determine all possible angles where the signal

strength might hit critical points. (Take S(θ)=0)

(b) In a separate part of the system, two angular sensors record angles α and β

corresponding to signal reflections from different directions. The team models

the combination of these reflections using:

Cos α+cos β = p and sin α−sin β = q

To prove that:

�� − ��
cos(α−β) =
�� + ��

Use compound angle identities and appropriate trigonometric

transformations to derive this result.

ITEM 2
A pharmaceutical company is developing a new drug, and its concentration

in the bloodstream after administration is modeled by the formula:

C(t)=C0 ⋅ e−kt

where:

 C(t) is the concentration of the drug in the bloodstream (in mg/L) at

time t hours after administration,
 C0 is the initial concentration (mg/L),
 k is the decay constant (per hour),
 e is the base of the natural logarithm.

The company wants to determine the time it takes for the concentration to
reduce to a certain safe threshold level.

Given the following information:

 The initial concentration C0 =100 mg/L,

 The decay constant k=0.3 per hour,
 The safe concentration level is 5 mg/L.

TASKS:

(a) Using logarithms, determine the time t (in hours) when the drug
concentration reaches the safe level.
(b) The company decides to adjust the decay constant to a new value k1
such that the drug concentration reaches the safe level in exactly 12
hours. Calculate the new decay constant k1​ .
(c) The company also models the concentration with a different function
involving indices and surds:

���
C(t) =
� �+�

Determine the time t (To two decimal places ) when C(t)= 5mg/L
ITEM 3
In an effort to improve the efficiency of water distribution, the Uganda

National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) is designing a new pipe

system for a growing town. The water flow rate (in liters per second) through

a section of the pipe is modeled by the rational function.

Where:

 x represents the pressure level (in bars) at a control valve.

 f(x) represents the corresponding rate of water flow.

 The engineers want to simplify this model using partial fractions for ease

of analysis, especially in integrating the flow rate over pressure ranges.

TASKS:

(a) Express the original function f(x) in terms of partial fractions.

(b) Suggest and explain practical ways in which the Uganda National Water
and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) can improve water distribution in

growing towns.
ITEM 4
MegaTech Uganda Ltd is planning to launch three new tech bundles

composed of smartphones , tablets , and smartwatches . To test market

demand, they create three sample bundles:

 Bundle A contains 2 smartphones, 3 tablets, and 1 smartwatch and is

priced at UGX 2,800,000.

 Bundle B contains 3 smartphones, 1 tablet, and 2 smartwatches and is

priced at UGX 3,050,000.

 Bundle C contains 1 smartphone, 4 tablets, and 3 smartwatches and is

priced at UGX 3,200,000.

However, due to a pricing glitch in their system, they lost the individual
prices of each item. Management needs your help to recover this information.

At the same time, a financial analyst advises that:

 The price of a tablet must be between UGX 400,000 and UGX 600,000.

 The price of a smartphone must be at least UGX 200,000 more than the

smartwatch.

 The cost of a smartwatch (z) must satisfy the quadratic condition:

Z2 − 800000Z + 120000000000 ≤ 0

TASKS:

(a) Form a system of three linear equations in three unknowns representing

the price of a smartphone, a tablet , and a smartwatch using the bundle

information above and solve them to find prices of the three items.

(b) Using the inequality conditions from the analyst form all inequalities
representing the restrictions and check whether the values obtained in (a)

satisfy all inequalities and the quadratic inequality

ITEM 5
You are a production manager at a factory that manufactures two types of
products, A and B. The production process involves three key resources:
Labour (measured in hours), Raw materials( measured in kilograms), and
energy (measured in kilowatts). The efficiency of the production process is
determined by the ratios of these resources, and your goal is to optimize
production while adhering to constraints.
The ratios of labour to raw materials for products A and B are given by:
� �
= =�
� �
Where a and c represent labour hours, and b and d represent raw material
usage for products A and B, respectively. The combined ratio of labour to raw
materials for the entire production line is:
� + �
=�
� + �
Additionally the following equations govern the relationships between the
resources for a new product C:
� + �� � + � �� + �
= =
� � �
Where x represents labour hours, y represents raw materials and z represents
energy consumption. The total resource constraint for producing product C is:
4x + 2y + 5z = 15
Two quality control tests for product B are modeled by the quadratic
equations which share a common root:
x2 + bx + c = 0 and x2 + px +q =0

TASKS:

� � �+�
(a) Using ratios �
= = � show that
� �+�
=�
(b) Find the values of x, y and z that satisfy the equations for the new
product C.
(c) Show that the relationship between the two quality control tests for
product B having a common root is given by:
(c - q)2 = (b - p) (cp - bq)
ITEM 6
Phillip is a financial analyst at a wealth management firm. His clients are

interested in understanding the growth of their investments and the

relationships between different financial metrics. The following problems

involve functions which are essential for modeling exponential growth,

interest rates and investment returns.

A client has two investment accounts X and Y with growth rates. The

combined logarithmic growth constraint is given by:

log2x + 2log4y = 4
Which must satisfy for xy = 16
The client also provides an additional condition: The sum of the investments

in a different logarithmic base satisfies:

log10(x + y) = 1
TASKS:

(a) Using the logarithmic constraint, show that it satisfies for xy = 16, hence
obtain the values for the two investment accounts X and Y using the above

logarithmic functions.

(b) Another client wants to understand the relationship between two

competing investment strategies, where the logarithmic returns are inversely

related given the identity:

Prove the given logarithmic identity hence solve the simultaneous equations:

logxy + 2logyx = 3 and log9y + log9x = 3 .

END