SOLUTION: In a regular polygon, the ratio of the measure of an exterior angle to the measure of an interior angle is 2:13. How many sides does the polygon have? Thanks in advance.

Algebra ->  Polygons -> SOLUTION: In a regular polygon, the ratio of the measure of an exterior angle to the measure of an interior angle is 2:13. How many sides does the polygon have? Thanks in advance.      Log On


   



Question 825165: In a regular polygon, the ratio of the measure of an exterior angle to the measure of an interior angle is 2:13. How many sides does the polygon have?
Thanks in advance.

Found 2 solutions by jsmallt9, KMST:
Answer by jsmallt9(3758) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
An exterior and and interior angle of a polygon form a linear pair. This makes them are supplementary. So if
x = the smaller angle, then
180 - x = the larger angle

Then, since the ratio of these is 2:13:
x%2F%28180-x%29+=+2%2F13
This can be solved. Cross-multiplying we get:
x%2A13+=+%28180-x%292
Simplifying:
13x+=+360-2x
Adding 2x:
15x+=+360
Dividing by 15:
x+=+24
This is the exterior angle. Since the exterior angles add up to 360 and since they are all the same in a regular polygon, the number of exterior angles is:
360/24 = 15.
So the polygon has 15 exterior angles. And since the number of sides is the same as the number of exterior angles, the polygon has 15 sides, a 15-gon.

Answer by KMST(5328) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
ANOTHER WAY:
In a polygon with n sides,
the sum of the measures of the n exterior angles is 360%5Eo ,
and the sum of the n interior angles is %28n-2%29%2A180%5Eo .
If the polygon is a regular polygon, all the exterior angles have the same measure, E , and all the interior angles have the same measure I .
So, for a regular polygon with n sides,
n%2AE=360%5Eo , and n%2AI=%28n-2%29%2A180%5Eo .
The ratio is
n%2AE%2F%28n%2AI%29=360%5Eo%2F%28%28n-2%29%2A180%5Eo%29 .
Simplifying, we get
E%2FI=2%2F%28n-2%29 .
For the polygon of the problem, E%2FI=2%2F13 ,
so 2%2F13=2%2F%28n-2%29
n-2=13
n=13%2B2
highlight%28n=15%29

OR MAYBE:
360%5Eo%2Fn:%28n-2%29%2A180%5Eo%2Fn%29%29%29=2%3A13%0D%0A%7B%7B%7B360%5Eo:%28n-2%29%2A180%5Eo%29%29%29=2%3A13%0D%0A%7B%7B%7B2:%28n-2%29%29%29%29=2%3A13%0D%0A%7B%7B%7Bn-2=13
n=13%2B2
highlight%28n=15%29