Jonathan is 3 ft from a lamppost that is 12 ft high. The lamppost and it's shadow form the legs of a right triangle. Jonathan is 6 ft tall and Is standing parallel to the lamppost. How long is Jonathan's shadow?

Question

I don't get how the answer is square root 180, Ryan?

Answer 1

Actually, it's sqrt(180) from the top of the pole to the tip of the shadow.

Using similar triangles, if the shadow is x feet long,

12/(3+x) = 6/x
12x = 18 + 6x
6x = 18
x = 3

so, the shadow is 3 feet long.

Answer 2

How are you supposed to know which direction the shadow is facing? Or what side of the lamppost he is standing on?