Question

If you place a 28-foot ladder against the top of a 22-foot building, how many feet will the bottom of the ladder be from the bottom of the building? Round to the nearest tenth of a foot.

Answer 1

Explanation:

Pythagoras

c² = a² + b²

with c being the Hypotenuse (the side opposite of the right angle), which is in our case the ladder.

28² = 22² + b²

784 = 484 + b²

b² = 784 - 484 = 300

b (the distance of the ladder from the wall) = 17.32050808... ft ≈ 17.3 ft