the first side of a triangle is 8 meters longer than the second side. the third side is 3 times the second side. the perimeter is 128 meters. find the lengths of the three sides.

Three of us showed how to solve a very similar problem.

http://www.jiskha.com/display.cgi?id=1265323782

How do you think you should solve this problem?

To solve this problem, we can use a system of equations to represent the relationships between the sides of the triangle.

Let's denote the second side as x. According to the problem, the first side is 8 meters longer than the second side, so it can be represented as (x + 8). The third side is given as 3 times the second side, making it 3x.

Now, we can set up the equation for the perimeter of the triangle using the given information. The perimeter is the sum of all three sides, so we have:

(x) + (x + 8) + (3x) = 128

Simplifying the equation, we get:

5x + 8 = 128

Next, we isolate x by subtracting 8 from both sides:

5x = 120

Finally, we divide both sides by 5 to find the value of x:

x = 24

Now that we have the value of x, we can find the lengths of all three sides:

First side = x + 8 = 24 + 8 = 32 meters
Second side = x = 24 meters
Third side = 3x = 3 * 24 = 72 meters

Therefore, the lengths of the three sides of the triangle are 32 meters, 24 meters, and 72 meters.