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A pole that is 3.5m tall casts a shadow that is 1.55m long. At the same time, a nearby tower casts a shadow that is 36.25m long. How tall is the tower? Round your answer to the nearest meter.

User Dontcare
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1 Answer

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Final answer:

Using a proportional relationship derived from similar triangles, the height of the tower is calculated as approximately 82 meters tall when rounded to the nearest meter.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the height of the tower, we can use similarity in right triangles. The pole and tower, along with their shadows, form two right triangles that are similar to each other. This means the ratios of the heights to the shadows of the pole and tower are equal:

Pole's height / Pole's shadow = Tower's height / Tower's shadow

Given the pole's height is 3.5m, and its shadow is 1.55m and the tower's shadow is 36.25m, we can set up the proportion:

3.5m / 1.55m = Tower's height / 36.25m

By cross-multiplying, we solve for the Tower's height:

3.5m * 36.25m = Tower's height * 1.55m

126.875m² = Tower's height * 1.55m

The tower's height is then:

Tower's height = 126.875m² / 1.55m

Tower's height = ≈82.5m

After rounding the tower's height to the nearest meter, we find that the tower is approximately 82 meters tall

User Romeo Valentin
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