Question

Tiffany sees this given dilation and claims that the scale factor is 2

because 4 is twice as big as 2. Is this a scale factor of 2? Explain.

Answer 1

The scale factor is not 2

Explanation:

Given

See attachment for the dilated triangles

Triangle ABC is dilated through center point O to form triangle A'B'C'.

From the attachment, we have:

`OC = 2` i.e. the distance from the center point to C

and

`OC' = 6` i.e. the distance from the center point to C'

The length of OC' is calculated using:

`OC' = OC + CC'`

`OC' = 2 + 4`

`OC' = 6`

The scale factor (k) is then calculated by dividing OC' by OC

`k = (OC')/(OC)`

`k = (6)/(2)`

`k = 3`

Hence, Tiffany's claim is incorrect.