the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle is 15 ft. the length of one legs is 9 ft. find the length of the other leg.
a) 6 ft
b) 21 ft
c) 12 ft
d) 18 ft
think 3-4-5 scaled up by 3
To solve this problem, we can use the Pythagorean theorem, which states that in a right triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides.
Let's call the length of the other leg x.
According to the Pythagorean theorem, we have:
(x^2) + (9^2) = 15^2
Simplifying this equation, we get:
x^2 + 81 = 225
Subtracting 81 from both sides, we have:
x^2 = 144
Taking the square root of both sides, we get:
x = 12 or x = -12
Since lengths cannot be negative, we discard the negative solution.
Therefore, the length of the other leg is 12 ft.
So, the correct answer is:
c) 12 ft