Final answer:
To calculate the ribbon needed for Melissa's 5 bulletin boards, use the Pythagorean theorem to find the diagonal of one board (26.83 inches) and multiply by 5, resulting in 134.15 inches of ribbon needed in total.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question involves calculating the amount of ribbon needed to decorate bulletin boards with a diagonal strip. To find out the length of the ribbon for one board, we have to calculate the length of the board's diagonal using the Pythagorean theorem. Given the dimensions of the board are 12 inches by 24 inches, we can consider these as the sides of a right-angled triangle and the diagonal as the hypotenuse.
Using the Pythagorean theorem (a2 + b2 = c2), where 'a' and 'b' are the sides of the triangle and 'c' is the hypotenuse (the diagonal in this case), we can calculate the length of one diagonal as follows:
(12 inches)2 + (24 inches)2 = c2144 + 576 = c2720 = c2c = sqrt(720)c ≈ 26.83 inches (rounded to two decimal places)
Melissa needs one strip of ribbon per diagonal for each board. Since she is making 5 boards, she will need:
5 x 26.83 inches = 134.15 inches of ribbon
To summarize, Melissa will need approximately 134.15 inches of ribbon to decorate all 5 bulletin boards.