Michelle creates a cube with a height of 6 centimeters. Her friend Tasha creates a square-based pyramid with the same height and base area as Michelle's cube. Find the volume of Michelle's cube and use it to find the volume of Tasha's pyramid. Show all work.

1 answer

To find the volumes of Michelle's cube and Tasha's pyramid, we need to calculate each volume using the appropriate formulas.

Step 1: Calculate the Volume of Michelle's Cube

The formula for the volume \( V \) of a cube with side length \( s \) is given by:

\[ V = s^3 \]

Since the height of Michelle's cube is 6 centimeters, and all sides of a cube are equal, we have:

\[ s = 6 \text{ cm} \]

Now, we can calculate the volume:

\[ V = 6^3 = 6 \times 6 \times 6 \]

Calculating it step-by-step:

  • \( 6 \times 6 = 36 \)
  • \( 36 \times 6 = 216 \)

Thus, the volume of Michelle's cube is:

\[ V = 216 \text{ cubic centimeters} \]

Step 2: Find the Base Area of the Cube

The base area \( A \) of Michelle's cube is the area of one face of the cube, which can be calculated as:

\[ A = s^2 = 6^2 = 36 \text{ square centimeters} \]

Step 3: Calculate the Volume of Tasha's Pyramid

The formula for the volume \( V \) of a pyramid with a base area \( A \) and height \( h \) is:

\[ V = \frac{1}{3} A h \]

We know the base area \( A \) of Tasha's pyramid is the same as the base area of Michelle's cube, which is \( 36 \text{ cm}^2 \), and the height \( h \) is \( 6 \text{ cm} \).

Now we can substitute these values into the formula:

\[ V = \frac{1}{3} \times 36 \times 6 \]

Calculating it step-by-step:

  1. First, calculate \( 36 \times 6 \):

\[ 36 \times 6 = 216 \]

  1. Then, compute \( \frac{1}{3} \times 216 \):

\[ \frac{1}{3} \times 216 = 72 \]

Therefore, the volume of Tasha's pyramid is:

\[ V = 72 \text{ cubic centimeters} \]

Summary of Results

  • Volume of Michelle's cube: \( 216 \text{ cm}^3 \)
  • Volume of Tasha's pyramid: \( 72 \text{ cm}^3 \)