Question

Mark cast a shadow that is 4 feet long. At the same time, a nearby tree casts a shadow that is 20 feet long. If mark is 6 feet tall, how tall is the tree?

Answer 1

30 ft

Explanation:

We can use the given information to set up a ratio...

`(Mark's\ height)/(Mark's\ shadow)=(Tree's\ height)/(Tree's\ shadow)`

`(6\ ft)/(4\ ft)=(x)/(20\ ft)`

We can solve this ratio using cross multiplication (multiply the numerator of the first fraction by the denominator of the second and the numerator of the second fraction by the denominator of the first):

120 = 4x

Divide both sides by 4

x=30 ft