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The lengths of two sides of the right triangle ABC shown in the illustration are given. Find the length of the third side in inches. a= 16 in and c= 34 in

The lengths of two sides of the right triangle ABC shown in the illustration are given-example-1
User Senne Verhaegen
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1 Answer

19 votes
19 votes

To be able to find the lengths of a right triangle, we can use the Pythagorean Theorem.


c^2=a^2+b^2

Since it is already given the value of "a" and "c", let's use the equation above to solve for "b" by substituting the values of "a" and "c".


\begin{gathered} 34^2=16^2+b^2 \\ 1156=256+b^2 \\ b^2=1156-256 \\ b^2=900 \\ \sqrt[]{b^2}=\sqrt[]{900} \\ b=30 \end{gathered}

Therefore, the length of side b is 30 inches.

User Uvylight
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