Question

A windmill casts a shadow that is 19 feet long. A nearby ladder casts a shadow that is 17 feet long. If the windmill is 15 feet tall, how tall is the ladder, to the nearest tenth of a foot?

Answer 1

x is the height of the ladder.

Two similar triangles are formed, then their corresponding sides satisfy the next proportion:

`\frac{15\text{ ft}}{19\text{ ft}}=\frac{x\text{ ft}}{17\text{ ft}}`

Solving for x,

`\begin{gathered} 15\cdot17=x\cdot19 \\ (255)/(19)=x \\ 13.4\text{ ft = x} \end{gathered}`