Final answer:
The scale of 1 inch = 50 feet for drawing the Space Needle is not reasonable because the drawing would be 12.1 inches tall, exceeding the dimensions of the paper, which are 8.5 inches by 11 inches.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine if the scale of 1 inch = 50 feet is reasonable for drawing the Space Needle on an 8.5 in. by 11 in. sheet of paper, we can calculate the scaled height of the Space Needle using the student’s scale and compare it to the size of the paper. The Space Needle is 605 ft tall, so at a scale of 1 in. = 50 ft, the drawing would be 605 ft ÷ 50 ft/inch = 12.1 inches tall. This would not fit on the paper, as it exceeds both the width and the height of the 8.5 in. by 11 in. sheet.
The student would need to use a smaller scale. For example, if they used a scale of 1 inch = 100 feet, the Space Needle could be represented as 605 ft ÷ 100 ft/inch = 6.05 inches tall, which would fit within the dimensions of the paper.