Solve the problem. If necessary, round to the nearest tenth.
-On a sunny day, a flag pole and its shadow form the sides of a right triangle. If the hypotenuse is 40 m long and the shadow is 32 m, how tall is the flag pole?
A) 64 m
B) 72 m
C) 24 m
D) 51 m

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Using the Pythagorean theorem, $a^2 + b^2 = c^2$, where $c$ is the hypotenuse, $a$ is the height of the flagpole, and $b$ is the length of the shadow. Given $c = 40$ m and $b = 32$ m, we solve for $a$: $a^2 = 40^2 - 32^2 = 1600 - 1024 = 576$. Taking the square root of 576 gives $a = 24$ m.

Solve the Problem