Arthur is playing in his room, which is 24.3 feet above ground. He then descends 39.9 feet to the basement, where is uncle is working in his woodshop. If ground level is 0 feet, which number best describes the location of the basement woodshop?(1 point)

Question

Responses

15.6 feet
15.6 feet

64.2 feet
64.2 feet

−64.2
feet
negative 64.2 feet

−15.6
feet

Answer 1

To determine the location of the basement woodshop, we can follow these steps:

1. Start with Arthur's current height above ground: 24.3 feet.
2. He descends to the basement, which is 39.9 feet down from the ground level.

To calculate the height of the basement, we subtract the distance he descends from his current height above ground:

\[ \text{Height of basement} = 24.3 , \text{feet} - 39.9 , \text{feet} = -15.6 , \text{feet} \]

Since the ground level is considered 0 feet, descending below ground will be represented as a negative value.

Therefore, the location of the basement woodshop is −15.6 feet.

The correct answer is −15.6 feet.