Question

A meter stick casts a shadow 1.4 m long at the same time a flagpole casts a shadow 7.7 m long.  The triangle formed by the meterstick and its shadow is similar to the triangle formed by the flagpole and its shadow.  How tall is the flagpole?

Answer 1

these two triangles are similar, so their ratios are equal.

7.7 / 1.4 = x / 1, where x = the flagpole length
multiply by one and simplify
x = 7.7 / 1.4