Question

What is the value of b in the triangle shown below?

o -4 in
o 4 in
o +-4 in
o no solution

Answer 1

+4 in

Explanation:

A= 1/2 x b x h

24=1/2 x b x 3b

b2=16

b=+4 or -4(N/A)

Answer 2

b= 4 in.

Explanation:

Ok. So the area of a triangle is base * height divided by 2.

So, the base is b and the height is 3b.

b*3b= 3b^2.

Now, divide that by 2.

(3b^2)/2.

Now, we know what the area is already- 24 in.^2. So, let's set the area expression that I found earlier equal to this area, since they're the same.

(3b^2)/2 = 24

3b^2 = 48

b^2 = 16

Ok. Let's stop here. Now, we square root both sides to obtain b, but we are presented with a problem here. B can equal both 4 and -4 right? Since -4*-4=16 and 4*4=16. However, it is impossible for a 2d shape to have negative measurements. So, the answer is 4.