Question

I'm having trouble figuring out how to solve this problem.

Answer 1

Notice that the diagram consists of two right triangles, as shown in the diagram below.

The hypotenuse of the triangle on the left is equal to 13.55, whereas another of its sides is equal to 13.7. According to the Pythagoras theorem,

`H^2=A^2+O^2`

In our case,

`\begin{gathered} H=13.55,A=13.7 \\ \Rightarrow13.55^2=13.7^2+O^2 \\ \Rightarrow O^2=-4.0875 \end{gathered}`

The last result is impossible since there is no positive number a such that a^2=-4.0875.

Therefore, the triangle on the left cannot exist, the diagram is incorrect.