You can put this solution on YOUR website! A triangle has a leg of 12 m and a hypotenuse of 13 m.
Find the length of the other leg.
Since the problem mentions a hypotenuse, we are working
with a right triangle. We will apply the Pythagorean Theorem
in order to solve this problem. Draw and label the right triangle’s
legs with “a” and “b” respectively. Label the longest side ( the hypotenuse),
the side opposite the right angle with “c”. The Pythagorean Theorem
tells us that a ² + b ² = c ².
Let a=12 meters and c = 13 meters.
We will substitute the “a” and the “c” into the Pythagorean Theorem
and we will solve for b.
a ² + b ² = c ²
replace “a” and “c” 12² + b² = 13²
square the 12 and the 13 144 + b² = 169
144 + b² = 169
solve for “b²” subtraction -144 = -144
b² = 25
Solve for b by taking the square root on each side.
b = 5 or b = -5
Since we are talking about length, b=-5 is excluded.
The length of the second leg is 5 meters!
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