Melissa has a gerbil that lives in a cage in the shape of a rectangular prism. She wants to put a ramp in the cage to give her gerbil exercise. The cage has a length of 70 cm, a width of 35 cm, and a height of 50 cm. How long does the ramp need to be to fit diagonally in the cage? Round the answer to the nearest tenth. (1 point)

92.9 cm

116.3 cm

60.2 cm

78.6 cm

1 answer

To find the length of the ramp that fits diagonally in the cage, we can use the formula for the diagonal \(d\) of a rectangular prism:

\[ d = \sqrt{l^2 + w^2 + h^2} \]

where \(l\) is the length, \(w\) is the width, and \(h\) is the height of the prism.

Given the dimensions of the cage:

  • Length \(l = 70\) cm
  • Width \(w = 35\) cm
  • Height \(h = 50\) cm

Now, we will substitute these values into the formula:

\[ d = \sqrt{(70)^2 + (35)^2 + (50)^2} \]

Calculating each square:

\[ 70^2 = 4900 \] \[ 35^2 = 1225 \] \[ 50^2 = 2500 \]

Now, we add these squares together:

\[ 4900 + 1225 + 2500 = 8625 \]

Next, we take the square root of 8625:

\[ d = \sqrt{8625} \approx 92.9 \]

Rounding to the nearest tenth, the length of the ramp that fits diagonally in the cage is:

\[ \boxed{92.9 \text{ cm}} \]