Please help?

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2 Answers
Jul 1, 2018

36

Explanation:

When a line is a perpendicular bisector of another line, then that means that it divides the line into 2 equal parts. It also means that the lines are at right angles to each other
For example, if AC is a perpendicular bisector of DE, then DB=BE

If we know that DB=BE, AC is at right angles to DE and AB is a common side of triangle ABE and triangle ABD, then we can assume that AD=AE.

Why? By using congruent triangles

In triangle ABE and triangle ABD,
1. AB is the common side
2. DB=BE (AC is a bisector of DE)
3. AC is at right angles to DE (AC is a perpendicular bisector of DE)
then triangle ABE = triangle ABD (SAS or two sides and one angle between the two sides are equal)

Therefore, AD=AE (same sides of proven congruent triangles are equal)

3x-9=x+21
2x=30
x=15

Since we want to find side AE which is equal to x+21, we can sub in x=15 to find its value which is 15+21=36

Jul 1, 2018

Since bar(AC) perpendicularly bisects bar(DE),

  • the lengths of bar(DB) and bar(BE) are the same (since bar(DE) is divided in two equal parts), and angle /_ABE is 90^@ (since bar(AC) intersects bar(DE) perpendicularly).
  • triangle DeltaDBA is a horizontal reflection of triangle DeltaABE (since bar(AC) divides one triangle DeltaDAE into two identical halves).

It then follows from the triangles being a reflection of each other that the lengths of bar(AD) and bar(AE) are identical. Therefore:

3x - 9 = x + 21

=> 2x - 9 = 21

=> 2x = 30

=> x = 15

As a result, the length of bar(AE) is:

color(blue)(L) = x + 21 = 15 + 21 = color(blue)(36)