what is the length of the missing leg if necessary round to the nearest tenth 10cm and 6.5cm and a on the right is missing

1 answer

To find the length of the missing leg in a right triangle with the other two legs measuring 10 cm and 6.5 cm, we can use the Pythagorean theorem, which states that:

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

Where:

  • \( a \) and \( b \) are the legs of the triangle,
  • \( c \) is the hypotenuse.

Assuming that 10 cm is the hypotenuse \( c \), and 6.5 cm is one of the legs \( b \), we can solve for the missing leg \( a \):

  1. Rearrange the formula to solve for \( a \):

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

  1. Substitute the values into the formula:

\[ a^2 = 10^2 - 6.5^2 \]

Calculating the squares:

\[ a^2 = 100 - 42.25 \] \[ a^2 = 57.75 \]

  1. Now, take the square root to find \( a \):

\[ a = \sqrt{57.75} \approx 7.6 \text{ cm} \]

Thus, the length of the missing leg is approximately \( 7.6 \) cm when rounded to the nearest tenth.