document.write( "Question 190170: Hi, I really need help with the question below. It is from a homework handout so I do not have an ISBN. Thanks for your help.\r
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document.write( "A ladder 15 feet long leans against a wall. The top of the ladder reaches a height that is 3 feet more than twice the distance from the base of the ladder to the wall. Draw and label a diagram. How high up the wall does this ladder reach? \n" );
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Algebra.Com's Answer #142724 by stanbon(75887) ![]() You can put this solution on YOUR website! A ladder 15 feet long leans against a wall. The top of the ladder reaches a height that is 3 feet more than twice the distance from the base of the ladder to the wall. Draw and label a diagram. How high up the wall does this ladder reach? \n" ); document.write( "---------------- \n" ); document.write( "Draw the picture. \n" ); document.write( "--- \n" ); document.write( "The ladder is the hypotenuse of a right triangle. \n" ); document.write( "Let the base of the right triangle be \"x\". \n" ); document.write( "Then the height on the wall is \"2x+3\". \n" ); document.write( "--------------- \n" ); document.write( "Using Pythagoras you get: \n" ); document.write( "x^2 + (2x+3)^2 = 15^2 \n" ); document.write( "x^2 + 4x^2 + 12x + 9 = 225 \n" ); document.write( "5x^2 + 12x - 216 = 0 \n" ); document.write( "Use the quadratic formula to get: \n" ); document.write( "x = [-12 +- sqrt(12^2-4*5*-216)]/10 \n" ); document.write( "Positive solution: \n" ); document.write( "x = [-12 + sqrt(4464)]/10 \n" ); document.write( "x = 5.38 ft \n" ); document.write( "2x+3 = 13.96 ft. (height on the wall) \n" ); document.write( "======================================== \n" ); document.write( "Cheers, \n" ); document.write( "Stan H. \n" ); document.write( " \r \n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " |