The hypotenuse of a triangle was

11 cm and the hypotenuse of the final triangle was
3.3 cm. What is the scale factor? Click Here for Help Video

1 answer

To find the scale factor between the two triangles, you divide the length of the hypotenuse of the first triangle by the length of the hypotenuse of the second triangle.

Given:

  • Length of the hypotenuse of the first triangle = 11 cm
  • Length of the hypotenuse of the second triangle = 3.3 cm

Scale factor = \( \frac{\text{Length of hypotenuse of the first triangle}}{\text{Length of hypotenuse of the second triangle}} \)

\[ \text{Scale factor} = \frac{11 , \text{cm}}{3.3 , \text{cm}} = \frac{11}{3.3} \]

Calculating \( \frac{11}{3.3} \):

\[ \frac{11}{3.3} = \frac{11 \times 10}{3.3 \times 10} = \frac{110}{33} = \frac{110 \div 11}{33 \div 11} = \frac{10}{3} \approx 3.33 \]

Therefore, the scale factor is approximately 3.33.