Answer: The answer is [tex]4\dfrac{1}{2}~\textup{hours}.[/tex]
Step-by-step explanation: Given that in a science project, Ayala and Sam were partners. They both spent different duration of time to complete the project as follows -
Time spent by Ayala on the project is
[tex]t_A=2\dfrac{3}{4}=\dfrac{11}{4}~\textup{hours},[/tex]
and time spent by Sam on the project is
[tex]t_S=1\dfrac{3}{4}=\dfrac{7}{4}~\textup{hours}.[/tex]
Therefore, the time spent by Ayala and Sam altogether is given by
[tex]T=t_A+t_S=\dfrac{11}{4}+\dfrac{7}{4}=\dfrac{18}{4}=\dfrac{9}{2}=4\dfrac{1}{2}~\textup{hours}.[/tex]
Thus, they work altogether for [tex]4\dfrac{1}{2}~\textup{hours}.[/tex]