SOLUTION: 1. One leg of a right triangle is 2 feet longer than the other leg. The hypotenuse is 10 feet long. Find the length of the legs of the triangle? 2. One leg of the right triangl

Algebra ->  Quadratic Equations and Parabolas -> SOLUTION: 1. One leg of a right triangle is 2 feet longer than the other leg. The hypotenuse is 10 feet long. Find the length of the legs of the triangle? 2. One leg of the right triangl      Log On


   



Question 287323: 1. One leg of a right triangle is 2 feet longer than the other leg. The hypotenuse is 10 feet long. Find the length of the legs of the triangle?
2. One leg of the right triangle is 5 units. The hypotenuse is one unit longer than the other leg. What is the length of the hypotenuse and the other leg?

Found 3 solutions by josmiceli, texttutoring, PRMath:
Answer by josmiceli(19441) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
(1)
you can call the legs x and x+%2B+2
By the Pythagorean theorem:
x%5E2+%2B+%28x%2B2%29%5E2+=+10%5E2
x%5E2+%2B+x%5E2+%2B+4x+%2B+4+=+10%5E2
2x%5E2+%2B+4x+%2B+4+=+100
x%5E2+%2B+2x+%2B+2+=+50
x%5E2+%2B+2x+=+48
Complete the square:
x%5E2+%2B+2x+%2B+%282%2F2%29%5E2+=+48+%2B+%282%2F2%29%5E2
%28x+%2B+1%29%5E2+=+49
%28x+%2B+1%29%5E2+=+7%5E2
x+%2B+1+=+7
x+=+6
x%2B2+=+8
The legs are 6 ft and 8 ft
check:
6%5E2+%2B+8%5E2+=+10%5E2
36+%2B+64+=+100
100+=+100
OK
(2)
Call the unknown leg x
h+=+x+%2B+1
the other leg is 5
%28x%2B1%29%5E2+=+5%5E2+%2B+x%5E2
x%5E2+%2B+2x+%2B+1+=+5%5E2+%2B+x%5E2
2x+%2B+1+=+25
2x+=+25+-+1
2x+=+24
x+=+12
x%2B1+=+13
The hypotenuse is 13 and the other leg is 12
check:
13%5E2+=+12%5E2+%2B+5%5E2
169+=+144+%2B+25
169+=+169
OK

Answer by texttutoring(324) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
1.
Let first leg = x
second leg = x+2
Use Pythag. Theorem: a%5E2%2Bb%5E2=c%5E2
x%5E2%2B%28x%2B2%29%5E2=10%5E2
Expand the (x+2)^2 term:
x%5E2+%2B+x%5E2+%2B4x+%2B4=10%5E2
2x%5E2%2B4x-96=0
2%28x%5E2%2B2x-48%29=0
Factor, by finding two numbers that multiply to -48 and add up to 2.
2%28x%2B8%29%28x-6%29=0
x=-8, or x=6
The side of a triangle can't be a negative number, so the answer must be x=6.
That means the second leg is equal to x+2=6+2=8 feet.
Leg 1 = 6 feet, Leg 2 = 8 feet, Hypotenuse = 10 feet.
Question 2)
Let x = the other leg
Hypotenuse = x+1
Use Pythag. Theorem: c%5E2=a%5E2%2Bb%5E2
%28x%2B1%29%5E2+=+5%5E2+%2B+x%5E2
Expand the left side:
x%5E2+%2B+2x+%2B+1+=+25+%2B+x%5E2
2x%2B1=25
2x=24
x=12
So the other leg is 12 units, and the hypotenuse is 13 units.

Answer by PRMath(133) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
1. One leg of a right triangle is 2 feet longer than the other leg. The hypotenuse is 10 feet long. Find the length of the legs of the triangle?

One leg of the right triangle is unknown: We'll call it "x"
The other leg is 2 feet longer than the other leg: 2 + x
The hypotenuse is 10 feet long.
You know a%5E2+%2B+b%5E2=+c%5E2 ("c" is the hypotenuse). Now let's fill in the blank.

Now let's fill in what we know.
One leg is "x"
The other leg: 2 + x
The hypot. is: 10


x%5E2+%2B+%28x%2B2%29%5E2+=+10%5E2
x%5E2+%2B+x%5E2+%2B+4x+%2B+4+=+10%5E2 (FOILED the above)
2x%5E2+%2B+4x+%2B+4+=+100
2x%5E2+%2B+4x+%2B+4+-+100+=+0 (subtracted 100 from both sides of the equation)
2x%5E2+%2B+4x+-+96+=+0 (combined like terms)
2%28x%5E2+%2B+2x+-+48%29+=+0 (factored out a 2 from everything)
x%5E2+%2B+2x+-+48%29+=+0 (divided 2 from both sides of the equation)
%28x+%2B+8%29%28x+-+6%29 = 0
x = -8 or x = 6 (disregard the -8 because a side cannot equal -8)

Does this work? If one side is 6 and the other is 2 more than 6 (or 8) and the hypotenuse is 10, then we have:

6%5E2+%2B+8%5E2+=+10%5E2
36+%2B+64+=+100} YAY it works.


2. One leg of the right triangle is 5 units. The hypotenuse is one unit longer than the other leg. What is the length of the hypotenuse and the other leg?

One leg is 5 units: 5
The hypotenuse is 1 longer than the other leg: X+ 1
The other leg is: X

Put it all together:

x%5E2+%2B+5%5E2+=+%28x+%2B+1%29%5E2
x%5E2+%2B+25+=+x%5E2+%2B+2x+%2B+1
0+=+x%5E2+-+x%5E2+%2B+2x+%2B+1+-+25
0+=+2x+-24
0+=+2%28x+-+12%29
0+=+x+-+12
12+=+x

Does x = 12 work?

One leg is 5
The other is 12
the hypotenuse is one more than 12: this is 13

5%5E2+%2B+12%5E2+=+13%5E2
25+%2B+144+=+169
169+=+169 YAY this works, too.

I hope this helps you.