Question

find the area of the triangle below. be sure to include the correct unit in your answer.

Explanation:

Step1: Recall the formula for the area of a right - triangle

The formula for the area of a triangle is \(A=\frac{1}{2}\times base\times height\). For a right - triangle, the two legs (the sides forming the right angle) can be considered as the base \(b\) and the height \(h\). Here, \(b = 8\space cm\) and \(h=15\space cm\).

Step2: Substitute the values into the formula

Substitute \(b = 8\) and \(h = 15\) into the formula \(A=\frac{1}{2}\times b\times h\). So, \(A=\frac{1}{2}\times8\times15\).
First, calculate \(8\times15=120\). Then, \(\frac{1}{2}\times120 = 60\).

Answer:

\(60\space cm^{2}\)