A fire and rescue squads places a 15 ft ladder against a burning building. If he ladder is 9ft from the building how far up will the ladder reach?
I got 17.5 ft
Is that right?
nope ...
h^2 + 9^2 = 15^2
h^2 + 81 = 225
h^2 = 144
h = √144 = 12
To solve this problem, we can use the Pythagorean theorem, which states that in a right-angled triangle, the square of the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.
In this case, we have a right-angled triangle formed by the ladder, the distance from the ladder to the building (9 ft), and the height up the building that the ladder reaches (let's call it "h"). The ladder is the hypotenuse, and we know its length is 15 ft.
Using the Pythagorean theorem, we can write the equation:
h^2 + 9^2 = 15^2
Simplifying the equation:
h^2 + 81 = 225
Moving the constant term to the other side:
h^2 = 225 - 81
h^2 = 144
Taking the square root of both sides:
h = √144
h = 12 ft
Therefore, the ladder will reach a height of 12 ft up the building, not 17.5 ft.