SOLUTION: Suppose the base and height of a triangle sum to 20, and the area of the triangle is 30 square sm. What are the dimensions of the triangle?

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Question 756243: Suppose the base and height of a triangle sum to 20, and the area of the triangle is 30 square sm. What are the dimensions of the triangle?
Answer by lwsshak3(11628) About Me  (Show Source):
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Suppose the base and height of a triangle sum to 20, and the area of the triangle is 30 square sm. What are the dimensions of the triangle?
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let x=base of triangle
20-x=height of triangle
Area of a triangle=1/2*base*height
30=1/2*x*(20-x)
60=20x-x^2
x^2-20x+60=0
solve for x by quadratic formula:
x+=+%28-b+%2B-+sqrt%28+b%5E2-4%2Aa%2Ac+%29%29%2F%282%2Aa%29+
a=1, b=-20, c=60
ans:
x≈3.68 or 16.32
base of triangle=3.68 m
height of triangle=16.32 m