Question

Phil is standing x + 5 feet from the base of a building. The height of the building is 6x-1 feet. Find the function that the straight-line distance from Phil’s feet to the top of the building in terms of x

Provide your answer below:

Answer 1

distance = √(37x² - 2x + 26)

Explanation:

The Pythagorean theorem states that the sum of the squares of the two legs of a right triangle is equal to the square of the hypotenuse.

So, distance² = (6x - 1)² + (x + 5)².

Powers: distance² = 36x² - 12x + 1 + x² + 10x + 25

Combine like terms: distance² = 37x² - 2x + 26

Square root: distance = √(37x² - 2x + 26)