You're locked out of your house and the only open window is on the second floor, 25 feet above the ground. You need to borrow a ladder from one of your neighbors. There's a bush along the edge of the house, so you'll have to place the ladder 10 feet from the house. What length of ladder do you need to reach the window?
30 feet
26.9 feet
35 feet
15 feet
To calculate the length of the ladder needed, we can use the Pythagorean theorem.
The length of the ladder represents the hypotenuse of a right triangle, with the height of the window being one side and the distance from the house to where the ladder is placed being the other side.
Letting "x" represent the length of the ladder, we can set up the equation:
x^2 = 25^2 + 10^2
x^2 = 625 + 100
x^2 = 725
x ≈ √725
x ≈ 26.9 feet
Therefore, the length of the ladder needed to reach the window is approximately 26.9 feet.
The correct answer is 26.9 feet.
To determine the length of ladder you need, you can use the Pythagorean theorem. The theorem states that in a right-angled triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.
In this case, the ladder acts as the hypotenuse, the distance from the base of the ladder to the house is one side, and the height of the window is the other side.
Using the Pythagorean theorem:
Ladder Length² = Distance from base of ladder to the house² + Height of the window²
Ladder Length² = 10 feet² + 25 feet²
Ladder Length² = 100 feet + 625 feet
Ladder Length² = 725 feet
Taking the square root of both sides:
Ladder Length ≈ √725 ≈ 26.9 feet
Therefore, you will need a ladder approximately 26.9 feet long to reach the window. Hence, the correct answer is 26.9 feet.