Triangles Online Practice

Question

Complete this assessment to review what you've learned. It will not count toward your grade.
11 of 1511 of 15 Items

Question
A volleyball net post needs a cable to support it. The hook to attach the cable is 4 ft. above the court surface, and the hook in the floor is 3 ft. from the base of the post. How long should the cable be?(1 point)
Responses

2.65 ft.
2.65 ft.

25 ft.
25 ft.

4 ft.
4 ft.

5 ft.

Answer 1

To find out how long the cable should be, we can use the Pythagorean theorem. The situation forms a right triangle where:

• One leg (the height from the court surface to the hook) is 4 ft.
• The other leg (the horizontal distance from the base of the post to the hook in the floor) is 3 ft.

Using the Pythagorean theorem:

\[ c^2 = a^2 + b^2 \]

where \(c\) is the length of the cable, \(a\) is the vertical leg (4 ft), and \(b\) is the horizontal leg (3 ft).

Calculating:

\[ c^2 = 4^2 + 3^2 \] \[ c^2 = 16 + 9 \] \[ c^2 = 25 \] \[ c = \sqrt{25} \] \[ c = 5 \]

Therefore, the cable should be 5 ft long.