Question

A 17- foot ladder is leaning on a tree. The bottom of the ladder on the ground at a distance of 3 feet from the base of the tree. The base of the tree and the ground from a right angle as shown. What is the distance, in feet, between the ground and the top of the ladder?

Answer 1

Using Pythagoras theorem

`17^2=\text{ }x^2+3^2`
`\begin{gathered} x^2=17^2-3^2 \\ x^2=289-9 \\ x^2=280 \\ x=\sqrt[]{280} \\ x\text{ =16.73320053ft} \end{gathered}`

To the nearest tenth x, the distance between the ground and the top of the ladder = 16.7ft