Question

In the diagram, a person who is 6 feet tall is standing on the ground 3 feet away from point P. A line segment drawn from the top corner o

the building to point P creates two similar triangles.

Which proportion can be used to find h, the height of the building in feet?

Answer 1

The proportion that can used to find the height of the building is

(person's height) / (building height) =

(distance between the person and point P) / (distance between the building and point P)

How to find the height of the building

The height of the building is solved using the principles of similar triangles

person's height / building height =

(distance between the person and point P) / (distance between the building and point P)

Substituting in to the equation results to

6 / x = 3 / 18

3x = 6 * 18

x = 6 x 18 / 3

x = 6 x 6

x = 36 ft