Question

6.use the pythagorean theorem to find the length of the side b of the right triangle.how do I use the pythagorean theorem to find the length of the side b of the right triangle?

Answer 1

Consider the triangle,

According to pythagoras theorem,

$\begin{gathered} \text{Hypotenuse}^2=base^2+height^2 \\ \text{Hypotenuse}=\sqrt[]{base^2+height^2} \end{gathered}$

Therefore, from the given triangle,

hypotenuse = 15

base = 9

height = ?

Substituting the values in the above equation, we have,

$\begin{gathered} 15^2=9^2+height^2 \\ \text{height}^2=225-81 \\ \text{height}=\sqrt[]{144}=12 \end{gathered}$

Thus, height (b) is 12.