Mr. Romero attached a ramp to the base of a window sill so that the family cat could more easily climb onto it. The ramp is 84 inches long. The window sill is 50 inches above the floor. ?

What is the distance from the base of the ramp to the base of the wall?

Enter your answer, rounded to the nearest tenth, in the box.

1 Answer
Math Tutor
May 24, 2018

x=√842−502=√7056−2500=67.5 inches

Explanation:

The ramp forms a right triangle, where
the ramp (84") is the hypotenuse h
the floor, from the base of the ramp to the wall, is side x
and the wall, from the floor to the window sill (50"), is side y

The relationship between the 3 sides is:
h2=x2+y2
Since we know the length of h and y, we can determine x .
x2=h2−y2
x=√h2−y2
x=√842−502=√7056−2500=67.5 inches

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