Answer:
1) 13 ft.
2) 23.3 m (when rounded to 1 dp)
Explanation:
The Pythagorean theorem states that
when a and b are the two legs (the sides adjacent to the right angle) and c is the hypotenuse (the longest side). This only applies to right triangles.
1) Question 1
The lengths of the two legs in the image are 12 ft. and 5 ft. We know that these are the legs because they are the sides adjacent to the right angle. We're solving for the length of the ladder, which in this case would represent the hypotenuse (c). Plug the values 12 and 15 into the equation as a and b and solve for c:
Take the square root of both sides
Therefore, the length of the ladder is 13 ft.
2) Question 2
The lengths of the legs in the image are 20 m and 12 m. Again, we know that these are the legs because they are the sides adjacent to the right angle, which in this case would be the corner of the garden. We're solving for the length of the fence going diagonally from one corner to the other, which represents the hypotenuse (c). Plug the values 20 and 12 into the equation as a and b and solve for c:
Take the square root of both sides
Therefore, the length of the fence when rounded to 1 decimal point is 23.3 m.
I hope this helps!