Question

How high is the top of the ladder from the ground?

Answer 1

We will use the Pythagorean theorem in order to find the missing value that is the height of the top ladder from the ground

`c^2=a^2+b^2`

In our case

c=10

a=5

b=?

We isolate the b

`b=\sqrt[]{c^2-a^2}`

We substitute the values

`b=\sqrt[]{10^2-5^2}`

`b=5\sqrt[]{3}`
`b=8.66\approx8.7`

round to the nearest tenth the answer is 8.7 ft