If a cubeĀ  has the same height and the same base area as the pictured shape, what is the volume of the pyramid if the volume of the cube is 81 cubic units? Round your answer to the nearest whole number if necessary.

1 answer

To find the volume of the pyramid, we first need to determine the dimensions of the cube.

  1. Volume of the Cube: Given that the volume of the cube is 81 cubic units, we can find the side length \( s \) of the cube using the formula for the volume of a cube:

    \[ V = s^3 \]

    Setting this equal to 81:

    \[ s^3 = 81 \]

    Taking the cube root of both sides:

    \[ s = \sqrt[3]{81} = 4.326 (approximately) \]

    However, 81 is actually \( 3^4 \), so \( s = 3^{\frac{4}{3}} \).

    Alternatively, we can calculate the actual cube root more directly: The cube root of 81 can be computed as:

    \[ s = 3^{4/3} = 3^{1.3333} \approx 4.326 \]

    OR \( s = 4.326 \)

  2. Base Area of the Pyramid: Since the cube has the same base area as the pyramid, the base area of the cube (which is \( s^2 \)) can be calculated as follows:

    \[ A = s^2 = (4.326)^2 \approx 18.738 \]

  3. Height of the Pyramid: The height of the pyramid is equal to the side of the cube:

    \[ h = s = 4.326 \]

  4. Volume of the Pyramid: The formula for the volume of a pyramid is given by:

    \[ V = \frac{1}{3} \times \text{Base Area} \times \text{Height} \]

    Plugging in the values we found:

    \[ V = \frac{1}{3} \times A \times h \approx \frac{1}{3} \times 18.738 \times 4.326 \]

    Now, we calculate this:

    \[ V \approx \frac{1}{3} \times 18.738 \times 4.326 \approx \frac{1}{3} \times 80.895 \approx 26.965 \]

  5. Rounding to the Nearest Whole Number: Rounding 26.965 to the nearest whole number, we get:

    \[ \text{Volume of the pyramid} \approx 27 \text{ cubic units} \]

Thus, the volume of the pyramid is approximately 27 cubic units.