The foot of a ladder is 6 m from the base of an electric pole. The top of the ladder rests against the pole at a point 8 m above the ground. How long is the ladder?
Let x = the length of the ladder.
From Pythagorean theorem,
The hypothenuse (c) is the longest side. The side facing the right-angle (∟)
x2 = 62 + 82
x2 = 36 + 64
x2 = 100
Take square root of both sides.
x = = 10
The ladder is 10 m long.
