Question

A student who is 5ft. 4in. tall measured his shadow (3ft.) and the shadow of the flag pole (14 ft. 3 in.) at the same time of day. What is the height of the flag pole in feet and inches (to the nearest inch)?

Answer 1

To find the height of the flag pole in feet and inches, we can use the ratios of the corresponding sides of two similar triangles, where the height of the flag pole is the unknown variable.

Let x be the height of the flag pole in feet. Then, using the ratios of the corresponding sides of the two similar triangles:

x / 14.25 = 5.33 / 3

Solving for x, we get:

x = 25.3 feet

Converting 0.3 feet to inches, we get:

0.3 feet × 12 inches/foot = 3.6 inches

Rounding off to the nearest inch, we get:

Height of the flag pole = 25 feet 4 inches.