Question

A ladder is propped against a wall. If the top of the ladder reaches 18 feet up the wall and the base of the ladder is 6 feet from the base of the wall, how long is the ladder?

Answer 1

If you sketch this out, the ladder, up against the wall, forms right triangle.

Using the Pythagorean theorem, you need to find c, the hypotenuse.

c^2 = 6^2 + 18^2

Solve for c, the length of the ladder.

Answer 2

129600