Question

Erik leans a 15 foot ladder up against his house in order to clean the gutters. The

base of the ladder is 9 feet from the base of the house. How far up the house does
the ladder reach?

Answer 1

12 Feet

Explanation:

It's the same as Pythagoream Theroem, just backwards!

The equation I used was...

x^2 + 9^2 = 15^2 (Square the two numbers)

x^2+ 81 = 225 (Subtract 81 from both sides)

x^2 = 144 (Find the square root of 144)

x = 12

Answer 2

Pythagoras theorem : a^2+b^2 =c^2

So you have 9^2 + b^2 = 15^2

9^2 = 81
15^2 = 225

81+ b^2 = 225

225-81 = 144

Square root of 144 is 12

The answer is 12 foot