29.
Home plate for professional baseball has the dimensions shown below.
What is the area of home plate, in square inches?
To find the area of home plate, we need to calculate the area of the trapezoidal shape.
The dimensions are:
- The front edge is 17 inches long
- The back edge is 8.5 inches long
- The two sides are each 12 inches long
We can find the height of the trapezoid by drawing a perpendicular line from the back edge to the front edge. This line divides the trapezoid into a smaller trapezoid and a right triangle. The height of the right triangle is the difference between the front and back edge lengths, which is 17 - 8.5 = 8.5 inches.
The area of the trapezoid can be calculated using the formula: Area = 0.5 * (sum of the lengths of the parallel sides) * height
Area = 0.5 * (17 + 8.5) * 8.5
Area = 0.5 * 25.5 * 8.5
Area = 108.375 square inches
Therefore, the area of home plate is 108.375 square inches.