A banner in the shape of an isosceles triangle has a base that is 2 inches shorter than either of the equal sides. If the perimeter of the banner is 34 inches, then what is the length of the equal sides?
Let x = length of sides, then x-2 = base.
2x + x -2 = 34
Solve for x.
To solve this problem, we can start by setting up equations based on the given information. Let's assume that the length of each equal side of the triangle is x inches.
We are told that the base of the triangle is 2 inches shorter than either of the equal sides. This means the base length is (x - 2) inches.
The perimeter of a triangle is the sum of the lengths of all its sides. In this case, the perimeter is given as 34 inches, so we can set up the following equation:
x + x + (x - 2) = 34
By combining like terms, we can simplify this equation:
3x - 2 = 34
Next, let's isolate the variable by adding 2 to both sides of the equation:
3x = 36
Finally, we can solve for x by dividing both sides by 3:
x = 12
Therefore, the length of each equal side of the triangle is 12 inches.