Question

The top of a gate post is in the shape of a square pyramid. The height of the pyramid is 5 inches and each side of the base is 7.4 inches. Find the volume of wood needed to make the top of the gate post. Round to the nearest tenth. Explain/show how you found the answer.

Answer 1

91.3 in³

Explanation:

The volume of a pyramid can be found using the formula ...

V = (1/3)Bh

where B represents the area of the base, and h represents the height.

Since the base is square, its area will be the square of the side length, so the volume is ...

V = (1/3)·(7.4 in)²·(5 in) ≈ 91.3 in³