Question

Find the length of the missing side. The triangle is not drawn to scale. Show your work. (Will give brainliest)

Answer 1

A^2 + b^2 = c^2

C is your hypotenuse or the longest side of the triangle; you plug in your values and solve for the missing side:

15^2 + b^2 = 17^2

225 + b^2 = 289

*-225 on both sides to get b by itself*

B^2 = 64

*to get rid of the ^2; you take the square root*

B = sqrt 64

B= 8 <— final answer

Answer 2

We can use the Pythagorean Theorem to solve for the missing side length (a).

Pythagorean Theorem:

a² + b² = c²

a and b are the legs (shorter sides) of the triangle and c is the hypotenuse (the longer side of the triangle).

1. Substitute in the known values.

a = ?

b = 15

c = 17

a² + 15² = 17²

2. Solve for a.

a² + 15² = 17²

a² + 225 = 289

a² + 225 - 225 = 289 - 225

a² = 64

√a² = √64

a = 8

Hope this helps!