Question

jillian is trying to save water, so she reduces the size of her square grass lawn by 8 feet on each side. the area of the smaller lawn is 144 square feet. in the equation ((x - 8)^2 = 144), (x) represents the side measure of the original lawn. what were the dimensions of the original lawn?
\\(\bigcirc\\) 4 feet by 4 feet
\\(\bigcirc\\) (8 + 6\sqrt{2}) feet by (8 + 6\sqrt{2})
\\(\bigcirc\\) (8 - 6\sqrt{2}) feet by (8 + 6\sqrt{2})
\\(\bigcirc\\) 20 feet by 20 feet

Explanation:

Step1: Take square root of both sides

$\sqrt{(x - 8)^2} = \sqrt{144}$
$x - 8 = \pm12$

Step2: Solve for x (positive value)

Since side length can't be negative: $x - 8 = 12$
$x = 12 + 8 = 20$

Answer:

D. 20 feet by 20 feet