Question

A cable attached to the roof of a building is 41 feet long. If the cable starts 9 feet from the base of the building, how tall is the building?

Answer 1

The building is 50 feet tall

Explanation:

The building may be considered in two parts; from the roof to the start of the cable and from the start of the cable to the base of the building.

As such, if the height of the building is h, the distance from the roof to the start of the cable is y and from the start of the cable to the base of the building x then

h = y + x

Then h = 41 + 9

= 50 feet