Bob placed a 17-foot ramp against the side of a house so the ramp rested on a ledge that is 8 feet above the ground. How far was the base of the ramp from the house?

Question

15 feet
16 feet
17 feet
18 feet

Answer 1

By using the Pythagorean theorem, we can find the distance between the base of the ramp and the house.

Let x be the distance between the base of the ramp and the house.

According to the Pythagorean theorem, in a right triangle with legs of length a and b and hypotenuse of length c, the equation is given by:

a^2 + b^2 = c^2

In this case, the height of the ledge (a) is 8 feet, and the length of the ramp (c) is 17 feet. We need to find the length of the base of the ramp (b).

Plugging in the values into the equation:

x^2 + 8^2 = 17^2

x^2 + 64 = 289

x^2 = 289 - 64

x^2 = 225

Taking the square root of both sides:

x = √225

x = 15

Therefore, the base of the ramp is 15 feet from the house.

The correct answer is 15 feet.