SOLUTION: the base of a triangle is 5cm greater than the height. The area is 18cm^2. find the height and length of the base

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Question 157320: the base of a triangle is 5cm greater than the height. The area is 18cm^2. find the height and length of the base
Answer by Fombitz(32388) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
The area for a triangle is,
A%5Bt%5D=%281%2F2%29bh
where b is the base and h is the height.
A%5Bt%5D=%281%2F2%29bh=18
%281%2F2%29%28h%2B5%29h=18
%28h%2B5%29h=36
h%5E2%2B5h=36
h%5E2%2B5h-36=0
%28h%2B9%29%28h-4%29=0
Looks like two solutions, let's check.
h%2B9=0
h=-9
A negative solution would not make sense.
h-4=0
highlight%28h%29=4
highlight%28b%29=h%2B5=5%2B4=9