Question

question
if you place a 35 - foot ladder against the top of a 26 - foot building, how many feet will the bottom
of the ladder be from the bottom of the building? round to the nearest tenth of a foot.
answer attempt 1 out of 2
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Explanation:

Step1: Apply Pythagorean theorem

The Pythagorean theorem is \(a^{2}+b^{2}=c^{2}\), where \(c\) is the hypotenuse (length of the ladder) and \(a\) is the height of the building (\(a = 26\) feet), \(c=35\) feet. We need to find \(b\) (distance from the bottom of the building to the bottom of the ladder).

$$b^{2}=c^{2}-a^{2}$$

Step2: Substitute values

Substitute \(a = 26\) and \(c = 35\) into the formula:

$$b^{2}=35^{2}-26^{2}$$

$$b^{2}=1225 - 676$$

$$b^{2}=549$$

Step3: Solve for \(b\)

Take the square root of both sides:

$$b=\sqrt{549}\approx23.4$$

Answer:

\(23.4\)