Question

Henry is trapped at the roof top of a burning building, which is 24 feet high. In order to rescue him, his father, Diego, must find a ladder which will be used to cross the river, which is 7 feet wide, and go up directly to the top of the building. Help Diego to find the appropriate length of ladder from the other side of the river to the top of the building

Answer 1

Answer: the ladder should be 25 feet

Explanation:

The ladder forms a right angle triangle with the building and the river. The length of the ladder represents the hypotenuse of the right angle triangle. The height from the top of the ladder to the base of the building represents the opposite side of the right angle triangle.

The distance from the bottom of the ladder to the base of the building represents the adjacent side of the right angle triangle.

To determine the length of the required ladder h, we would apply Pythagoras theorem which is expressed as

Hypotenuse² = opposite side² + adjacent side²

h² = 24² + 7² = 576 + 49

h² = 625

h = √625 = 25 feet