Question

a right triangle has side lengths of 12 feet and 5 feet. what is the length, in feet, of the hypotenuse?

Answer 1

use the phytagorean theorem or however it's spelled: a^2 + b^2 = c^2

A and B are the side lengths and C is the hypotenuse.

Substitute: 12^2 + 5^2 = c^2

169 = c^2

Square both sides and you're left with:

c=-13 or 13

It has to be the positive one because a length cannot be negative.

Hope this helped!