Question

A ladder is placed against a wall such that the top is 8 feet above the ground. If the ladder is 10 feet long, how far away from the wall is the base of the ladder

Answer 1

6 feet

Explanation:

Consider the right triangle formed by the wall, ladder and ground.

Let the distance the ladder is from the wall be d , then

Using Pythagoras' identity in the right triangle

The square on the hypotenuse ( ladder) is equal to the sum of the squares on the other 2 sides ( wall and d ), then

d² + 8² = 10²

d² + 64 = 100 ( subtract 64 from both sides )

d² = 36 ( take the square root of both sides )

d =
`√(36)` = 6

That is the ladder is 6 feet away from the wall